Law History Profiles

Sanjeeta Johal graduated with LLB class of 2005 from the law school at UBC. She currently works as an Associate at Whitelaw Twining Law Corporation (“Whitelaw Twining”). Her legal practice primarily focuses on personal injury law. With extensive litigation experience, Johal has appeared before the Supreme Court of British Columbia, the British Columbia Provincial Court and the Workers’ Compensation Appeal Tribunal.

When Steven Brandner practised law in downtown Vancouver, focused on commercial leasing, his clients were mostly lawyers, mid- level managers and organizations. With some, he could send a quick memo to them or their lawyer, get a response, and a deal was sealed ... 

For many, the thought of going to court over a small claims dispute can be an overwhelming prospect. Peter A. Allard School of Law alumna Shannon Salter is hoping to make the task a little easier as the chair of the newly-created BC Civil Resolution Tribunal.

When it opens later this year, the Civil Resolution Tribunal (CRT) will be the first online tribunal in Canada, and one of the first in the world. This tribunal will allow people to make choices about where, when and how they resolve their strata property and small claims disputes.

I had the pleasure of meeting with Myrna McCallum the recently appointed Director of Investigations at UBC. Myrna is Cree-Métis from northern Saskatchewan. She was a single mom of young children during her time at law school. Racism, exclusion and the over-representation of Indigenous peoples in prisons and the justice system overall in Saskatchewan, prompted her to pursue a career in law. Myrna joined the law school in 1998 and again in 2002. She graduated with her LL.B. in 2005.

Why did you choose to attend Allard Law?

When Lutz Reide (LL.M. ’04) first visited Vancouver to study English in 2000, he was so drawn to the city’s West Coast lifestyle that he knew he’d return one day. Three years later, after earning his law diploma at Vienna University, the German native found himself back in Vancouver ...

Sharon MacMillian is a Partner at the Vancouver office of Miller Thomson LLP (“Miller Thomson”). Her legal practice primarily focuses on real estate law and its connection with a variety of other sectors including environmental and commercial law. Acritas Stars recognized MacMillan in its 2018 global survey of “stand-out” lawyers.

Still in its infancy, animal law is a growing area of practice and one that Rebeka Breder (class of ’04) is passionate about. Her groundbreaking work in this area has garnered the attention of many and is changing the way we view law as it applies to non-humans ...

Carpe Diem. Seize the day. This is the motto that Drew Lawrenson lives by, and it is with this energy and love of life that he came to be where he is today. As Vice President, General Counsel of the Eminata Group, the largest provider of post-secondary education in Canada with 43 campuses enrolling more than 15 000 students, Drew engages with stakeholders to build consensus and works with students, employees, governments, businesses and community leaders from across Canada.

Dr. Carol Liao is an Assistant Professor at the Allard School of Law and the UBC Sauder Distinguished Scholar of the Dhillon Centre for Business Ethics at the UBC Sauder School of Business. She is the Director of the Centre for Business Law, a leading national research centre that also oversees the Business Law Concentration and two experiential learning programs at Allard Law, the Business Law Clinic and Corporate Counsel Externship. Prior to joining UBC, Dr.

Ryan Dalziel is a partner at Norton Rose Fullbright and a member of the LLB class of 2003. He has clerked for Justice William Esson and Justice Mary Newbury at the BC Court of Appeal and for Justice Rosalie Abella at the Supreme Court of Canada.

Jamie Maclaren, QC has a demonstrated dedication to increasing access to justice and has been significantly involved in pro bono organizations. He is the founding Executive Director of Access Pro Bono, a Vancouver-based organization that provides free legal advice to BC’s low income individuals and non-profit organizations. Furthermore, he is the former Executive Director of Pro Bono Law of BC and of Law Students’ Legal Advice Program (LSLAP) at the Allard School of Law, where he currently volunteers as a supervising trial lawyer and Director. Mr.

Jari was an elite speed skater and competed in community, regional, provincial, national and international competitions during his competitive career from 1983 to 2000. Following his retirement from competitive speed skating, Jari coached athletes ranging in age from 3 to 75 and from beginner to national/elite level at the Burnaby Haida Speed Skating Club and six Fraser Valley speed skating clubs from 2000 to 2005...

Mandeep Gill graduated with LLB class of 2003 from the law school at UBC. She currently works as an Associate at Harper Grey LLP (“Harper Grey”) in Vancouver. As a member of the firm’s Health Law, Professional Regulation, and Critical Injury Law Groups, Gill’s primary focus is on representing clients in civil and disciplinary matters.

Jordanna Cytrynbaum is a Director at Whitelaw Twining Law Corporation (“Whitelaw Twining”) in Vancouver. Her legal practice largely focuses on commercial litigation. At Whitelaw Twining she leads both the Commercial Speciality Group and the Employment Law Specialty Group. Cytrynbaum’s ample litigation experience has brought her before all levels of court as well as administrative tribunals. In addition, Cytrynbaum has extensive experience advising and representing clients through arbitration processes.

Bob Delamar, Director of Business Development for Raysat, Inc. in Vienna, Virginia, thinks big. Always has. No inside-the-box for him. Who knows—maybe it’s the traveling. The next two weeks include stops in Nashville, Vancouver, Tokyo and Beijing—an itinerary mapped in the latitudes and longitudes of the entire globe.

Maybe it’s the influence of larger-than-life former Senator Ray Perrault, a maternal cousin and hero to the young Delamar, who said, “You know, son, I think you’d make a fine lawyer someday.”

It is cases like these which weigh heavily on Deanna Okun-Nachoff (’02), the 36-year-old executive director and staff lawyer at the West Coast Domestic Worker’s Association. As the only lawyer within the organization, Okun-Nachoff handles cases involving domestic workers who face deportation because of illness ...

Mark Fancourt-Smith graduated from the law school at UBC’s LLB program in 2002. Prior to attending law school, Fancourt-Smith received an Honours Bachelor of Arts from Queens University in English, Biology, and Philosophy in 1994. During his early legal career Fancourt-Smith worked as an Associate with Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP from 2003-2010. He is currently a Partner at Lawson Lundell LLP (“Lawson Lundell”) in Vancouver, having joined the firm in 2010.

Miranda Lam is a partner in the commercial litigation group at McCarthy Tétrault where she focuses on diverse forms of shareholder disputes and is the retail sector lead for the national Retail and Consumer Markets Group. She dedicates her practice to problem solving and seeking the best possible resolution for her clients.

Ms. Lam graduated from the law school at UBC in 2002. She clerked at the BC Supreme Court before joining Davis LLP and subsequently McCarthy Tétrault LLP.

If Brodie Swartz had been asked while attending law school in what capacity he planned to work after graduation, one would have been surprised by his answer, given his success as Vice President, Legal at the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System (OMERS) Administration Corporation in downtown Toronto.

“I never would have thought in a million years that I’d be working at a pension plan and enjoying it,” he said in a phone interview.

Just like the many ski destinations that his company manages, Allard School of Law alumnus Trevor Bruno’s’ career has seen its fair share of adventure. In 2007, Trevor joined Intrawest, the largest developer and operator of ski resort properties in North America, as Legal Counsel. Over the years, through a series of challenging events and rewarding opportunities, Trevor worked his way up to serve as the President of Intrawest Resort Club Group and Intrawest Hospitality Management.