Suzanne Anton
BC Attorney General and Minister of Justice
Suzanne Anton was elected MLA for Vancouver-Fraserview on May 14, 2013, and was appointed Minister of Justice and Attorney General on June 7, 2013. She also serves on the Cabinet Committee on Secure Tomorrow, Priorities and Planning Committee and is the Vice Chair of the Legislative Review Committee.

Prior to her election to the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, Suzanne served as a Vancouver City Councillor from 2005 to 2011, and was Vancouver Park Board commissioner from 2002 to 2005.

During her time on Council, she sat on the boards of TransLink and the Federation of Canadian Municipalities. Suzanne has served on numerous corporate, non-profit and community boards.

Prior to politics, Suzanne was a math teacher and a Crown Counsel. She received a degree in Mathematics from the University of Victoria and a Bachelor of Law at the University of British Columbia.

Suzanne and her husband Olin live in Vancouver and have three adult children. They are avid cyclists and have cycled from Vancouver to Budapest. Read more.

Dr. Roshan Danesh
Professor and Founder, Education for Peace

Roshan is a lawyer, conflict resolution innovator, and educator whose areas of work, teaching, and writing include conflict resolution, peace-building, constitutional law, Indigenous rights, inter-ethnic and inter-religious dialogue, and organizational dynamics and cohesion.

Roshan completed his Doctoral studies at Harvard Law School, and has taught at many academic institutions around the world including the University of British Columbia (Vancouver), University of Victoria, European Peace University (Austria), the Justice Institute of British Columbia (Vancouver), and Landegg International University (Switzerland). He also publishes extensively in academic journals.

In conjunction with his teaching, Roshan has worked extensively over the past decade as a consultant to numerous international organizations, corporations, governments, and schools, focusing in the areas of peace-building, proactive conflict-resolution, organizational cohesion, and leadership and team-building. Organizations he has worked with include the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), NASA, Kraft Jacobs Suchard, British Columbia International Commercial Arbitration Centre, City of Nanaimo, Government of British of Columbia, Representative for Children and Youth, and the Municipality of Baker Lake.

For the past decade Roshan has also worked extensively with First Nations governments in Canada on the advancement and protection of Constitutional rights, design and implementation of negotiation and reconciliation processes, governance and strategic development, and dispute resolution.

Roshan is also one the founders of Education for Peace, an international peace education and peace-building organization which currently operates and implements programs in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the United States of America, Canada, and Bermuda. Its flagship program in Bosnia and Herzegovina involves hundreds of thousands of children, youth, and adults, and is now considered one of the largest and successful programs of peace education ever undertaken.

Roshan lives with his family in Victoria, British Columbia.

Geoff Plant
Geoff Plant provides public law and policy advice and representation, and also works as a mediator and arbitrator in public and private law disputes. He was the Attorney General of British Columbia and Minister Responsible for Treaty Negotiations from 2001 to 2005. In 2012 Mr. Plant was named one of Canada’s most influential lawyers by Canadian Lawyer Magazine.
Mr. Plant was first elected to the British Columbia Legislature in 1996 and from 1996 to 2001 was Opposition Justice Critic, as well as serving on a number of legislative and caucus committees. As Attorney General, Mr. Plant was the Chair of the Legislative Review Committee, the Minister responsible for the creation and oversight of the Citizens’ Assembly on Electoral Reform, and the Minister responsible for the negotiation of the New Relationship, the first-ever political accord between the Government of British Columbia and the province’s three aboriginal political organizations.

Prior to his election to the Legislature, Mr. Plant practised as a litigation lawyer with particular emphasis on aboriginal and public law. He was counsel in a number of leading aboriginal rights and title cases, including the landmark case of Delgamuukw v. British Columbia. He has lectured and written extensively on aboriginal law, public law and law reform. Since re-entering law practice in 2005, Mr. Plant has been appointed senior advisor to the Government of British Columbia in land and resource negotiations with the Council of Haida Nation and the First Nations Leadership Council, he has undertaken more than two dozen successful mediations in a dispute between investors and a major Canadian mutual fund company, and has provided strategic advice to a number of BC businesses on establishing effective relations with First Nations. In 2006, Mr. Plant was appointed as a Special Advisor to the Premier and Minister of Advanced Education to lead a project called “Campus 2020: Thinking Ahead”, the first comprehensive review of post-secondary education in British Columbia in over 40 years. His report, entitled Access and Excellence: The Campus 2020 Plan for British Columbia’s Post-Secondary Education System, was released in April 2007.

From May 2007 until February 2009, Mr. Plant served as Vancouver’s Civil City Commissioner. In 2010, he was appointed board chair of Providence Health Care, one of the largest faithbased health care organizations in Canada, operating 14 sites in Vancouver, including St. Paul’s Hospital.

In 2012 Mr. Plant was appointed chief legal strategist for the BC Government in the proceedings of the Joint Review Panel considering the Northern Gateway Pipeline. He is also board chair of the Land Title & Survey Authority of British Columbia, the Canada West Foundation and the Dalai Lama Center for Peace and Education. In May 2015 he was appointed Chancellor of Emily Carr University of Art and Design.

Mr. Plant has been recognized as a leading practitioner in the area of aboriginal law in the 2013 Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory and in the 2013 and 2014 editions of The Best Lawyers in Canada (Woodward/White).

The Honourable Wally Oppal
Wally is an experienced counsel and strategic advisor. His practice focuses on alternative and traditional dispute resolution as well as Aboriginal law. After graduation from the University of British Columbia Law School, Wally went into private practice for a number of years. During this time he was appointed as a Special Prosecutor on many high profile criminal and commercial cases.
In 2005, he was appointed as Attorney General of British Columbia and served as Minister Responsible for Multiculturalism until 2009. Wally was involved in many significant reforms of the justice system, including the establishment of Canada’s first community court to deal with chronic offenders, developing new Rules of Court in order to promote quicker resolution of disputes and developing new initiatives in dealing with violence against women.

A lifetime resident of British Columbia, Wally has dedicated his entire working life to the pursuit of social justice and community safety. His landmark report on policing in British Columbia led to many policing reforms after its publication in 1994. Wally’s service to the public of this province, most recently as Commissioner of the Missing Women Commission of Inquiry, is of special significance.

Shannon Salter
Shannon Salter is the Chair of the Civil Resolution Tribunal.
Ms. Salter grounds her leadership of the Civil Resolution Tribunal in her longstanding commitment to access to justice, particularly in the context of administrative tribunals.

An active provider of pro bono legal advice and representation through her career, Ms. Salter is also adjunct professor of administrative law at the UBC Faculty of Law, a commissioner of the Financial Institutions Commission and vice president of the British Columbia Council of Administrative Tribunals.

Ms. Salter has also served as a vice chair of the Workers’ Compensation Appeal Tribunal, a litigation lawyer at a large Vancouver law firm, a board member of the College of Registered Nurses of British Columbia, and a judicial law clerk with the British Columbia Supreme Court.

Ms. Salter earned her BA (2001) and LLB (2005) from the University of British Columbia, and her LLM from the University of Toronto (2011).

Michael F. Welsh
Michael was called to the British Columbia bar in 1981 and practises primarily in the ADR field, mostly in family law mediations, as well as civil mediation and civil and family arbitration. He has been a mediator since 1997. Based in Penticton, he is a Certified Family Law Mediator and Family Law Arbitrator by the Law Society of British Columbia and is a civil mediator and arbitrator, holding the designations of C. Med., Q. Arb., and Cert.Fam.Arb. and is an Associate of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators.

He is a member of the Mediate BC Family Roster and BCAMI Civil Roster and acts as a mediator for the Law Society in fee disputes between lawyers and clients. Michael is President of the British Columbia Arbitration & Mediation Institute (BCAMI) and currently Vice-President of the BC Branch of the Canadian Bar Association . He is an executive committee member of the CBA National ADR Section and Okanagan ADR Section. He writes regularly for the Advocate, a legal magazine in BC, both legal articles and as its wine columnist, and has also published several articles in BarTalk magazine and the Canadian Arbitration & Mediation Journal. He is periodically asked to talk on ADR, legal and wine-related topics for various legal groups and at continuing legal education programs.

Tony Gioventu
Tony is the Executive Director of the Condominium Home Owners’ Association of B.C. (CHOA), a consumer association in British Columbia with over 200,000 members comprising strata corporations, owners, and business members who serve the strata industry. Tony is the weekly Condo Smarts columnist for The Province, The Times Colonist, “24 hrs”, and host of the AM650 Talk About Strata show. Since 2002 Tony has written over 800 columns and information bulletins that are exclusively dedicated to strata living. Tony has served as a director/committee member for the Homeowner Protection Office, BC Building Envelope Council, Canadian Standards Association, The Real Estate Council of BC, and continues to play an active role in research and development of building standards, legislation for strata corporations and consumer protection.
With offices in New Westminster, Victoria and Kelowna CHOA provides service to its members throughout the province, promoting an understanding of strata living, and the interests of strata property owners. On average the association fields 250 inquiries a day from owners, strata council members, managers and agents, and delivers over 100 seminars annually on a variety of strata related topics including governance, operations and administration.

Dianne Martin
Dianne Martin, is a seasoned mom, stepmom, Certified Stepfamily Counsellor and Registered Social Worker. She has over 30 years’ experience working with families in Canada and the UK as a social worker, Team Leader and Program Consultant.

Martin, a passionate advocate for remarried families, launched Dianne Martin & Associates in 2009. She designed and developed a powerful array of evidenced based counselling and educational programs for stepfamilies. When research revealed that many family service professionals did not understand the unique stepfamily issues and dynamics, she designed a two-day professional development event: From Intake to Integration: A Therapeutic Model for Working with Stepfamilies

Martin received her Bachelor of Social Work degree from the University of Calgary and studied under Dr Lofas, PhD, LCSW, NYC, NY of the Stepfamily Foundation. She is a member of the BCCSW, BCASW, CASW.

Martin is a blogger, contributing writer to StepMom Magazine. She is Psychosocial Support Program volunteer and facilitates a cancer support group. Martin resides with her husband on Vancouver Island.

Julie Daum
Julie Daum is a mediator, facilitator, conflict resolution coach and instructor. She is a member of the Wet’suwet’en First Nation, belongs to the Frog Clan and resides on the Stellaquo Reserve in the central interior of BC.
Julie is on the roster of BC Child Protection Mediators and Canadian Human Rights Commission Mediators, has been a Mentor in the Mediate BC Child Protection Mediation Practicum, and has coached for the Continuing Legal Education Society Family Mediation training, and the University of British Columbia Law, Justice Institute of BC and the University of Northern BC, and most recently Thompson Rivers University Law School.

Julie also facilitates workshops for The College of New Caledonia on developing culturally appropriate practices for working with First Nation families and communities.

Sharon Sutherland
Sharon Sutherland is a mediator and lawyer with expertise in conflict resolution training and program design. From 2000-2014, she was a full-time faculty member at the University of BC Faculty of Law where, in addition to a range of substantive legal courses, she taught a clinical mediation program. She has taught dispute resolution at Thompson Rivers Law School since 2012. Sharon is a member of the Mediate BC Civil Roster and the Child Protection Roster. She is currently applying her dispute resolution and design skills as a Knowledge Engineer in the development of the Civil Resolution Tribunal. Sharon was honoured with the 2011 Susanna Jani Prize for Excellence in Mediation.

Kathleen Bellamano
Ambitus Consulting, Victoria, BC
Kat is a registered social worker, mediator, parenting coordinator, arbitrator and conflict management trainer in private practice. She is also the Executive Director of Communica Dialogue and Resolution Services, a non-profit organization in Victoria. She has been a working in both family and civil dispute resolution for 13 years and specializes in working with high conflict families and intercultural issues. Kat is a certified as a Comprehensive Family Mediator by Family Mediation Canada and is also on Mediate BC’s Family Mediator Roster and Civil Mediator Roster and is a mentor for Mediate BC’s Family Mediation Program. Kat is also on the BC Parenting Coordinators Roster and the BC Hear the Child Roster. She is on the Board of Directors of BC Arbitration and Mediation Institute and Family Mediation Canada.

Melissa Ruckmick
Melissa Ruckmick is a communication specialist as well as a marketing and PR consultant. Her expertise in tactical language refinement, negotiation, mediation, and project logistics have been finely honed through her work in organizational consulting, on university boards of directors, in private coaching, and with scientific documentary film production.
Melissa’s career for 15 years has been based on supporting people to utilize the most effective communication, marketing and PR strategies to best clarify their focus. Her research offers cutting edge, relevant data to be incorporated in every application and is based in a preventative model.

Whether Melissa is conducting a seminar, workshops or giving talks, she is engaging, humorous and full of applicable, useful tools for people to utilize quickly.

Jay Chalke
Ombudsperson – Province of British Columbia

Appointed as Ombudsperson in July 2015, Jay Chalke has an extensive background in public sector leadership, independence and collaboration.

From 2011 to 2015 Jay led the Justice Services Branch of the Ministry of Justice and was responsible for delivering reforms to justice services and fostering dialogue and collaboration across the justice system.

Prior to his appointment with the Ministry of Justice, Jay was the Public Guardian and Trustee from 2000 to 2011. During this time, he was instrumental in implementing legislative reforms as well as changes to modernize service delivery, improve collaboration and enhance public accountability.

Earlier in his career, Jay held a variety of public sector positions, including Deputy Public Trustee of British Columbia, Deputy Public Guardian and Trustee of Ontario, Head of the Review of Certain Practices in New Brunswick Correctional Institutions, Senior Policy Advisor for justice policy in the government of Ontario’s Cabinet Office, and Crown Counsel with the Ontario Ministry of Attorney General. He began his career as a Correctional and Psychiatric Services Investigator with the Ombudsman of Ontario.

Jay has served as a member of the Justice and Public Safety Council of British Columbia, and a Governor of the Law Foundation of British Columbia. He is a member of the Law Society of British Columbia, and was appointed Queen’s Counsel in 2006.

Anne Chopra
B.Comm., MIR, (Queen’s), J.D.

Anne is a lawyer, mediator and a workplace consultant in British Columbia.

She has been the Equity Ombudsperson for the Law Society of British Columbia for the last 15 years works and a consultant, who assists her clients with development of respectful workplace policies, training and mediation of conflicts. She also assists publically traded companies in corporate governance, TSX policies and corporate development in general.

As the Equity Ombudsperson she deals with issues of discrimination and harassment among lawyers, staff and articling students. In this position, she coaches and assists clients to deal with issues of discrimination and harassment, assists organizations and law firms to implement respectful workplace polices, procedures and practices. She is also called into firms to mediate solutions for firms that are facing challenges in their workplace culture.

She has a multi-disciplinary background in mediation, organizational development, coaching, business, and law. She launched her career in equality in employment in 1983, when she graduated with her multi-disciplinary Masters in Industrial Relations from Queen’s University. With this education she secured a one year practicum with the Alberta Government where she was trained and exposed to all aspects of human resources, including: recruitment, selection, training, compensation and organizational development. In 1985, she moved to Ontario to develop a How to Handbook for medium sized employers to implement policies free of systemic discrimination for Ontario Urban Alliance on Race Relations in 1985. With this background, she has been working in the LSBC ombudsperson position and privately consulting to government and private companies on issues of discrimination and harassment.

She has been an active member of the CBA, specifically with the WLF. She was a member of the mentoring committee from the founding stage of the mentoring program for the CBA Women Lawyers Forum (“WLF”) and was the Co-Chair for the Mentoring Committee for five years. She was also a member at large with the WLF and in this role she also developed the WLF Award of Excellence. In 2006, she was recognized by the CBA as an exceptional lawyer in the advancement of equality and was awarded the provincial CBA Equality and Diversity Award.

She was an associate at Fraser and Company and Owen Bird as a business securities lawyer. Currently she is a consultant to publically traded companies listed on the TSX, in areas of corporate governance, employment and project development and sits on number of publically traded TSX listed companies. She is the past President of the Law Court Inn and remains a director.

Also, she is the author of Beyond the Mirror, Seeing Ourselves As We Are, 2000 and has been a keynote speaker for various events on: diversity, empowerment, harassment and workplace practices.

Ms. Chopra’s contact information is available here.

Shehni Dossa
Shehni was sworn in as a Judge of the Provincial Court of British Columbia on March 31st 2000. She presides over cases in the criminal, family and civil divisions. Prior to her appointment to the Bench, Shehni was the Assistant Deputy Chair of the Appeal Division of the Immigration and Refugee Board.

Shehni was born in Kenya and educated in Kenya, England and Canada. She has a Bachelor’s degree in business, a Masters degree in liberal studies from Simon Fraser University, and a law degree from the University of British Columbia. She practised civil and criminal litigation for ten years before her appointment to the Refugee Division of the Immigration and Refugee Board in 1993.

Active in the Ismaili Community, Shehni served as a member of the Leaders International Forum. She is the former Chairperson of the National Conciliation and Arbitration Board and has served as Vancouver Convenor for the Aga Khan Foundation–Partnership Walk for international development. Shehni is a Director on the Canadian chapter of the International Association of Women Judges and on the Canadian Association of Provincial Court Judges – Equality and Diversity committee. She served as a member of the Canadian Bar Association – Equality Committee and Alternate Dispute Resolution Advisory Panel and as a director on the B.C. Council for Administrative Tribunals and the Burnaby Chamber of Commerce. She is a member on the Centre for Excellence in Immigration and Integration – Federal Partnership Council and an advisor to the Vancouver Asian Heritage Month Society.

Shehni has been active in professional development and training of decision-makers and has facilitated workshops on gender and cross-cultural issues. She has been a speaker and presenter at many conferences on issues involving equality and justice, immigration and human rights. Shehni completed the National Judicial Institute’s Social Context Faculty and Course Development Program for Judges in 2001. She was nominated as BC’s 100 influential Indo-Canadians in 2008. She is the recipient of the Queen’s Jubilee Award (2002) and the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal (2012) for exceptional Community service to Canada.

John Sanderson
John Sanderson is a mediator, arbitrator, independent investigator, fact-finder, consultant and lawyer called to the Bar in Ontario and British Columbia.

Mr. Sanderson has acted as mediator, facilitator and arbitrator across Canada and internationally in numerous labour and commercial matters, including insurance claims, corporate contractual disputes, securities and broker-client investment claims, construction matters and disputes, environmental disputes, inter-governmental disputes, employment matters, in relation to First Nations claims and interests, claims of discrimination, violations of human rights and behaviour-related complaints, and disputes in the public and private sector. He has acted as Chief Negotiator for Government of Northwest Territories. He has advised parties on the design of dispute resolution systems, providing training on ADR techniques and conducted numerous conflict and relationship audits. He is a principal of Conflict Managers Group, an alliance of senior professionals from different disciplines formed to provide advice on all aspects of conflict management, to parties in both the public and private sector across Canada. He is a co-founder of Pathways Partnership, which provides facilitation and advisory services arising from the obligation to consult with respect to relationships between business, First Nations and government.

Mr. Sanderson is a member and former Chairman of the Labour Relations Section of the Canadian Bar Association. He is a member of: the Alternate Dispute Resolution Committee of the Canadian Bar Association; Mediate BC (civil roster); the ADR Institute of Canada and is a panel member of ADR Chambers (Western Canada). He is a Past-President of the Board of Directors of the BC Arbitration and Mediation Institute; a Past-Director of the BC Dispute Resolution Innovation Society (now Mediate BC Society); Past-President of the BC Chapter of the Society of Professionals in Dispute Resolution; former Chair of the Advisory Board to the Centre for Labour and Management Studies, University of British Columbia; and was a founding Director of a non-profit educational organization, The Pacific Foundation for Economic and Social Co-operation and its Centre for Conflict Management. He is a conciliator with the Canadian Human Rights Commission; arbitrator and mediator, Sport Dispute Resolution Centre of Canada; mediator, Canadian Dispute Resolution Corporation; senior adjudicator, Indian Residential School Adjudication Secretariat; court appointed arbitrator, Hepatitis C Class Action Claims; arbitrator, Canadian Transportation Agency; and Ombudsperson, BC Hydro.

Mr. Sanderson is the author of a book on arbitrations entitled “Labour Arbitrations and All That,” as well as a book on collective bargaining, entitled “The Art of Collective Bargaining.” He co-authored the first editions of a leading book on Alternative Dispute Resolution, published by Carswell, entitled “Innovative Dispute Resolution: The Alternative”.

Cheryl L. Vickers
Cheryl is a lawyer whose practice focusses on dispute resolution, including mediation and arbitration, administrative law, and real property assessment law. Cheryl chaired BC’s Property Assessment Appeal Board from 2003 to 2015, and served as Vice-Chair from 1995-2003. Since 2007, Cheryl has chaired BC’s Surface Rights Board, a tribunal exercising jurisdiction under the Petroleum and Natural Gas Act and other statutes to resolve surface lease and right of way disputes between landowners and the holders of subsurface rights. She is a member of the Hospital Appeal Board, established under the Hospital Act to hear appeals from hospital management boards respecting registered health practitioners. From March 2013 to April 2014, Cheryl served as Acting Chair of BC’s new Civil Resolution Tribunal, assisting with the development of Canada’s first on-line tribunal to help citizens resolve strata and small claims disputes.

Cheryl was active in the development of the British Columbia Council of Administrative Tribunals (BCCAT), and served for many years as a member of that organization’s Board of Directors, including as its President from 2004-2006. She assisted with curriculum development for BCCAT courses to offer training to appointees of quasi-judicial boards and tribunals and is a BCCAT course instructor. In October 2009, Cheryl received BCCAT’s Recognition Award for outstanding contribution to administrative justice.

Cheryl serves on the editorial boards of two CLE Practice Manuals – Real Property Assessment and Administrative Law.

Tina Cicchetti
Tina Cicchetti is a partner at Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP in Vancouver. Tina’s practice focuses on domestic and international commercial arbitration and investment arbitration. She has been arbitrator, counsel or tribunal secretary in a wide range of matters, including M&A, shareholder disputes, licensing, construction and distribution agreements. Tina has experience with cases under the ICC, AAA, ICDR, JCAA, Swiss, LCIA, UNCITRAL and BCICAC Rules. She routinely advises clients on the drafting of arbitration clauses and strategic options available in commercial and investment arbitration.

For many years, Tina taught a seminar on international commercial disputes as an Adjunct Professor at the University of British Columbia, Faculty of Law. She is also the former president and a current Advisory Board member of the Young Canadian Arbitration Practitioners (YCAP), and a member of the Executive Committee of ICC Canada (the Canadian National Committee to the ICC International Court of Arbitration), a member of the ICDR Canadian Advisory Committee, a board member of the Western Canada Commercial Arbitration Society (WCCAS), and a former member of the Regional Coordinating Committee of the North American Chapter of ICC’s YAF. Tina was recognized by Who’s Who Legal: Arbitration 2016 and named in the Lexpert Guide to the Leading US-Canada Cross-Border Litigation Lawyers 2014-2015 for International Commercial Arbitration.

Prior to joining the firm, Tina clerked at the BC Court of Appeal. She is fluent in English and has reading knowledge of French, Spanish and Italian.

Peter Silin
MSW, RSW, CCC

Registered Social Worker and Certified Clinical Counsellor Peter Silin is the founder and principal of Diamond Geriatrics, Inc. Diamond Geriatrics and Elderpost.com. Diamond Geriatrics provides case management, seniors housing consultations, health care navigation, and counselling.

Peter received his bachelor’s degree from McGill University and his Masters in Social Work from the University of Toronto. He has worked with seniors and their families for over thirty five years in nursing homes, family therapy agencies, community care, geriatric medicine and psychiatric clinics, and hospitals.

Peter has written numerous articles for magazines, professional journals, and newspapers, been seen and heard on national network and local TV and radio, and has acted as a national eldercare consultant with the Canadian government and in private industry. The second edition of his book, Nursing Homes and Assisted Living: The Family’s Guide to Making Decisions and Getting Good Care, was published by Johns Hopkins University Press and is used around the world.

Leslie Maerov
Les has been a member of the BC Bar since 1975 and a solicitor of the Bar of England and Wales since 1991. He was in private practice from 1975 until 1997 when he became CEO and President of Urban Communications Inc., a publicly listed telecoms company, as well as conducting arbitrations. He has been a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators since 2011 and is a director of the BCICAC and member of the BCAMI.

Kathryn Sainty
Called to the Bar of British Columbia in 1986 Kathryn practised with a variety of firms in the Vancouver area. In 1997 she become Legal Counsel to the Chief Justice and Associate Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of British Columbia. In 2001, she was appointed a District Registrar of the Court and in 2010 she became the Registrar of the Supreme Court of British Columbia, serving until 2014.

Kathryn has a long-standing interest in consensual dispute resolution, obtaining her mediation training at Harvard Law School (Program on Negotiation) in 2012 and through the American Arbitration Association University in 2013. She is a member of both the Mediate BC Civil and Family Rosters and is accredited as a “family dispute resolution professional” (mediator and arbitrator) by the Law Society of British Columbia. She is a member of the domestic and mediation panels of the British Columbia International Commercial Centre and a Member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators. She was appointed Queen’s Counsel in 2015.

Ronald Smith
From Kelowna, Ron has practiced in B.C. since 1975. Ron began practicing mediation in 1985. He has conducted hundreds of mediations in most areas of law since that time. In 2013, Ron decided to focus his attention on mediation and arbitration to provide the best possible solutions for the Family Law matters of his clients. Ron is a dedicated leader in the British Columbia legal profession.

He is a founding Board Member and is a Past Vice-Chair of the B.C. Mediator Roster Society and past Chair and Executive Board Member of the Continuing Legal Education Society of B.C. (CLE). Some of Ron’s leadership activities entail teaching and coaching mediation skills for CLE, the Justice Institute of British Columbia, the BCAMI and the National Judicial Institute. Ron is a member of the Mediate BC’s Family and Commercial Mediation Rosters. He is qualified to conduct family mediations and arbitrations through the Law Society of BC. He received his Queen’s Counsel in 2010 for his service to the profession.

Carol Hickman
Carol obtained her law degree from the University of Saskatchewan in 1987 and has practised law in the New Westminster area for over 20 years at all levels of court, including the British Columbia Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court of Canada. She has extensive experience in complex family law matters, including property division, maintenance, and custody and access disputes. Carol was appointed Queens Counsel in 2011. Her practice is primarily in family law, and she is also a family law mediator. Carol has been a member of the Vancouver Collaborative Divorce Group since January 2001 and is one of the pioneering members of the Collaborative Family Law Group serving the Lower Mainland. She has been an instructor for Continuing Legal Education on several occasions, including the Family Law Conference in 2001, 2005, 2007, 2009 and 2011. Carol co-wrote the 2005 Family Law Deskbook.

Scott Siemens
After graduating from the University of Saskatchewan and completing a 10 year career in Corporate Finance, Scott transitioned into the Public sector with several assignments inside the Canada Revenue Agency and Canada Border Services Agency. In 1996, as part of a journey in self-discovery, Scott took a 5 year leave from Government where he and his family served as volunteers with a US based international relief and development agency. Working amidst the oppressed and conflicted peoples of southern Appalachia & Central America, Scott provided direction to local initiatives focusing on conflict transformation through several Victim-Offender Reconciliation Programs (VORP) he administered. In 2002, Scott and his family returned to Canada, rejoining his Federal employer as an Internal Labour Relations Mediator. Since that time, Scott has continued his international work within multi-disciplinary teams engaging conflict environments in Northern Ireland; Rwanda, Burundi & east Congo; and, most recently, Cambodia & Laos.

As part of the Eastern Mennonite University and Seminary (Harrisonburg VA) Conflict Transformation and Peace Studies program, Scott has been conducting mediations and facilitations inside and out of government for nearly two decades.
Scott is a Government of Canada accredited mediator with the Department of Justice’s ICMS network, a member in good standing of the ADR Institute of Saskatchewan, and holds the designation of Chartered Mediator (C.Med.) with the ADR Institute of Canada. Scott is a Director of the ADR Institute of Canada.

Scott lives in Regina with his wife Julie and their adult daughter. Another daughter and son-in-law reside in Saskatoon.

John Singleton
Mr. Singleton has practiced law since 1969. He has concentrated on the areas of insurance, construction, professional liability and environmental matters, on behalf of property owners, architects, engineers, contractors, regulatory agencies and insurers. He has acted as counsel in several precedent-setting cases involving insurers, architects, engineers and other participants in the construction industry and has been counsel on a wide variety of problems related to environmental issues.

Mr. Singleton is also a chartered arbitrator and mediator of complex commercial disputes, and is actively involved in both mediation and arbitration on behalf of his own clients and as a mediator/arbitrator retained by others. He also acts as a fairness advisor/monitor of procurement activities in a variety of settings.

Walley P. Lightbody
Q.C.

Walley Lightbody is a director of the BCICAC. After decades as a top legal counsel in Vancouver he moved to the Okanagan where he has a practice in arbitration and mediation. He received the Georges Goyer Award by the BC Branch of the CBA in 2010 for his service to the legal profession and the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal in 2012.

Lecturer, Performance Bonds, Labour and Material Bonds, Insurance Bureau of Canada, 1981, Continuing Legal Education, 1987. Advisory Director, Big Brothers of Vancouver, since 1968. Recipient of Cecil Walker award, 1987. President, The Lawyers’ Inn. Member, Board of Arbitrators and General Counsel, for the British Columbia Internatonal Commercial Arbitration Centre, since 1988. University of British Columbia (Bachelor of Arts, 1956. Bachelor of Laws, 1960).

Clayton G. Shultz
FCIArb, FCICBV, FCPA, FCA

Clayton holds fellowships in the London, UK-based Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, the British Columbia and Ontario Institutes of Chartered Professional Accountants, and the Canadian Institute of Chartered Business Valuators. He has written numerous articles and published a book entitled Matrimonial Settlements: The Tax and Accounting Implications (Butterworths Western Canada, 1980) and a supplement to it in 1982. Following eight years as regional valuations partner in Coopers & Lybrand (now PriceWaterhouseCoopers), he joined the Vancouver Stock Exchange as its Executive Vice-President in charge of Corporate Finance, Trading, and Compliance. From 1996 to the present, he has been providing arbitration and mediation services as well as business valuation opinions, primarily in a litigious context.

Gerald W. Ghikas
Q.C., FCIArb

Before establishing an independent arbitration practice in January, 2013, Gerald Ghikas was head of Litigation and the Chair of the Commercial Arbitration Group in the Vancouver office of the Canadian national firm of Borden Ladner Gervias LLP. He is the former Chair of the Executive Committee and Managing Partner of Ladner Downs. With over 40 years of ADR experience, Mr. Ghikas has acted both as arbitrator and counsel in ad hoc and institutional commercial arbitrations in Canada and abroad. He has extensive experience in arbitrations and litigation relating to mining exploration, the energy industry, engineering, technology, intellectual property and trademark matters, partnerships, joint venture agreements, manufacturing and distribution, international trade, finance and capital markets, construction disputes, real estate and commercial leasing.

He is on the American Arbitration Association Roster of Distinguished International Arbitrators International Centre for Dispute Resolution and a member of the American Bar Association, the Canadian Bar Association and the International Bar Association. Mr. Ghikas is a member of the London Court of International Arbitration and Founding Member and Chair of the Western Canada Arbitrators Round Table. He is also an Executive of the Canadian National Committee of the International Chamber of Commerce International Court of Arbitration and Member of Arbitration Commission. Mr. Ghikas is the recipient of the 2006 Lionel J. McGowan Award for Excellence in the field of alternative dispute resolution in Canada and is the author of numerous publications.

Terence van der Woude
Terence van der Woude is a Financial Consultant with Investors Group. He has achieved IG’s prestigious PILLAR AWARD status by placing himself in the top 10% nationally for the last 3 years. He was also awarded with New Consultant of the Year for the Greater Vancouver East Region in 2015. His client base is mostly drawn from his former industry of Vancouver’s vibrant film & live performance scene. Because of the nature of this industry, he specializes in US / Canadian income rules & regulations for Canadian citizens. Terence is a true Wet Coaster as he has lived in the Lower Mainland all his life and is grateful to be a very proud papa with his two children & loving wife.

Steve Kim
Since founding Boilingpoint Group in 2007, Steve has thrived on helping organizations develop thought leadership and cross cultural strategies to drive business results. Before founding Boilingpoint, Steve was the Director of Marketing and Business Development of Chalk Media, a leading North American “how-to” content solutions company, where he played a key role in successfully navigating the business past the dotcom crash and getting it listed on the TSX Venture Exchange before its eventual acquistion by Research in Motion in 2008.

Big into community building, Steve currently volunteers his time serving as Board Director of Place des Arts, Co-Founder & Past Chair, for C3 Korean Canadian Society, Board Director of the Canada Korea Business Association, Member the Multicultural Advisory Council of BC, Committee Member for the Economic Development Advisory Council for the City of Coquitlam, Member of the Past Presidents’ Council for the BC chapter of the American Marketing Association, President of the BC Liberals Coquitlam-Maillardville Riding Association and the Provincial Chair for the BC Liberals.

Steve is a graduate of the University of Western Ontario and holds a Master of Arts from Korea University, where he specialized in the study of venture-backed technology, business and industry.

Art Kewin
Art Kewin is a senior family dispute resolution professional. His professional experience as a psychologist, civil litigator at all levels of BC Courts, mediator, arbitrator, collaborative lawyer and financial planner is of unique value to clients negotiating major life transitions. Particularly when entering into, and moving on from, spousal relationships.

Art’s practice integrates legal principles with financial facts and concepts to help build stronger foundations for new relationships and to create better solutions to the challenges of moving on. Essentially, legal principles guide and financial realities decide.

He became a Certified Family Mediator in 1986 and earned his Certified Financial Planner designation in 2001. He has taught the methods and benefits of integrating legal and financial concepts to lawyers, clinical counsellors, financial planners, insurance and investment advisors and accountants for over a decade.

Prior to law, Art travelled extensively, served in the New Zealand Army as a military psychologist and earned a Master’s degree in psychology.

Art is a keen snowboarder and motorcyclist. Art and his wife Ruth, A Life Coach at www.DivorceRoadMap.com, live in South Surrey and are avid cyclists.

Patrick Williams
B. Com., LL.B

Patrick Williams is a partner with Clark Wilson LLP in Vancouver in their Strata Property and Alternative Dispute Resolution Practice Groups. Patrick’s practice focuses on assisting strata corporations, developers and strata lot owners with dispute resolution. He is an experienced and qualified arbitrator and mediator who has managed numerous strata property, real estate and construction disputes. Patrick has written and published many articles on issues in the strata property industry, including construction-related problems experienced by owners, property managers and developers. He is a regular contributor to the industry periodicals and regularly delivers presentations and seminars to industry groups, strata corporations and property managers. He has also published articles regarding the use and benefit of arbitration and mediation as an alternative to court and is a frequent guest instructor for the mediation component of the Professional Legal Training Course required to be taken by all articled students in British Columbia. He obtained his Bachelor of Commerce degree in 1973 and a Bachelor of Laws degree in 1974, from the University of British Columbia. He is a past president of the BCAMI and currently a trustee and president of the BCICAC.

Alex Ning
Alex Ning is an experienced Notary Public and mediator. He has mediated since 1999, holds his C.Med through BCAMI and has served for many years as a small claims mediator and mentor in the Court Mediation Program administered by Mediate BC. His notary practice focuses on immigration and refugee matters and he was named BC Notary of the Year in 2010.

Bob Springer
Q.Med. PAg

Having spent the last 30 years as a Professional Agrologist, helping agricultural producers find solutions to their management, environmental and production challenges, I’ve recently found a new passion: helping people find creative solutions to their conflicts by building understanding through constructive communication, mediation, relationship building, conflict & communication coaching, group facilitation and multi-stakeholder consultation.

My focus is on workplace and land/resource use conflict resolution throughout Western Canada.

At the same time I am still a licensed Agrologist with active interest in the following areas: getting science-based information about agriculture to the public; rural/urban relationship building by developing better understanding between the urban consumer and rural food producer; agricultural livestock welfare; role of livestock grazing in ecology of native grasslands and sustainable agriculture.

Diane Tucker
Although Diane E. Tucker is a relative newcomer to ADR in the Lower Mainland, she gained significant experience as an arbitrator in San Francisco for the State Bar of California and the Better Business Bureau, and as a mediator for the Superior Court of San Francisco. Diane is a member of BCAMI; she is an arbiter with Just Resolve, an online dispute resolution service based in the San Francisco Bay Area.

In addition, Diane is a Certified Information Privacy Professional for both Canada and the US, and retains her license to practice law as a member of the State Bar of California. She is the sole proprietor of DET et al., a consulting business providing domestic and international privacy and dispute resolution services. Diane’s background includes positions as in-house counsel in the electronic entertainment, enterprise software and food industries as well as adjunct faculty teaching law, paralegal and business students.

Elton Simoes
Elton Simoes is an accomplished, Arbitrator, Mediator, Negotiator, Consultant and Business Executive with extensive and global experience in business, negotiation, arbitration, mediation and dispute resolution systems design.

Having lived and worked in Canada, United States, Europe, and Latin America, Mr. Simoes demonstrated outstanding record of leadership; creative problem-solving; sound business acumen; legal and dispute resolution skills and knowledge, in different organizations across multiple functions, geographies, languages, cultures, and technologies.

As an ADR professional, Elton Simoes possesses extensive experience in commercial arbitration, mediation and Med.-Arb., particularly in the areas of intellectual property, media, entertainment, sports, and international disputes. Mr. Simoes has worked as a consultant in the designing of dispute resolution systems, to either avoid or minimize litigation costs, saving time and effort in commercial disputes involving consumers, shareholders and other stakeholders.

Mr. Simoes led businesses that generated in excess of US$ 250 million in annual revenues, consistently and frequently delivering double digit growth, and successfully managing important global media brands (e.g. Disney and Playboy), as well as local brands.

Elton Simoes held several senior, high profile, corporate positions, such as Vice President at The Walt Disney Television International; Board Member Representative at HBO Latin America, Managing, Director Sports and Pay-per-view, at Globosat; and Managing Partner at Playboy do Brazil.

Joan Cotie
Principal Mediator, Arbitrator and Consultant

Joan lives in Cobble Hill on Vancouver Island with her partner and 4 footed friends. She is a mediator, arbitrator and Parent Coordinator with 35 years of experience working with families, high conflict individuals and community. Joan has experience planning national and provincial conferences and looks forward to working with the BCAMI Symposium team in planning this exciting opportunity.

Brenda Hooper
C.Med, CCR, FMC.Cert. CFM. – Conflict Management Expert

Brenda Hooper is a conflict management expert who works with individuals, organizations and families using a variety of dispute resolution methods such as Conflict Management Coaching, Mediation and Relationship Awareness Training.

Brenda received her Certification in Conflict Resolution from the Justice Institute of BC in 1998 and has gone on to receive National & International designations in mediation, coaching and training. She is a Director of the British Columbia Arbitration and Mediation Institute and a Roster Member with MediateBC.

Brenda operates her private practice in Conflict Management in Delta BC and provides in-person or distant coaching & mediation services throughout North America.

Jerome Dickey
BA, CHRP

As a dynamic Business Professional with solid expertise in both Operations and Human Resources, Jerome has been focusing his professional practice on enhancing human capital by transforming business through people for optimum results.

During his 20 years of leadership and management roles in a variety of sectors including commercial aviation, transportation and utilities, he’s crafted his ability to leverage challenging business problems into opportunities.

He holds a Bachelors Degree in Business, is a Certified Human Resources Professional (CHRP), and is a member of British Columbia Arbitration and Mediation Institute, in addition to the Mediate BC Civil Roster.

Jerome enjoys building the capacity of others through dynamic coaching, workshops, dialogue and presentations.

Joan Braun
Joan Braun is a lawyer, social worker and mediator in Vancouver, British Columbia. She was called to the bar in 2001, obtained a Master of Social Work degree in 2007 and a Master of Law degree in 2005. Her graduate studies focused on mediation. In addition to academic qualifications she has extensive experience as a mediator. She is the author of publications on mediation topics and is a regular speaker at professional events. Joan also has more than six year’s experience in executive management in legal sector organizations. Most recently she led organizations that had a strong focus on older adult issues. While in that role, Joan realized the value of using mediation to resolve disputes between older adults and their families. She subsequently expanded her private practice to include elder mediation services. Joan is currently the chair of the Association for Conflict Resolution’s Elder Mediation Section. She is the past chair of the Canadian Bar Association’s National ADR Section.

Erika Deines
BA, C.Med. PGCNL

I have been mediating for 17 years (since 1999) and have become a Chartered Mediator in 2003. I have been involved in family mediations as well as civil court, neighborhood, workplace and oil and gas mediations, and First Nations settings.

While most of my mediations start face-to-face, or alternatively, shuttle and telephone mediations, I have moved into blended practice, with online mediation added for increased service delivery. As member of the associate faculty at Royal Roads University I offer ongoing training for MediateBC in facilitating technology assisted, synchronous online mediations.

Apart from my private mediation and coaching practice, I have overseen the implementation of civil court mediation programs for the Department of Justice (Provincial and Queen’s Bench Courts, Alberta), been an oil and gas industry mediator for the Energy Regulator (formerly ERCB), and recently completed a contract for the ADR Institute of Alberta in the position of Executive Director. Currently I am an Associate at Fairway Dispute Solutions, engaging as senior negotiator in high conflict family issues. I hold a B.A. in Justice Studies and a post-graduate certificate in the NeuroScience of Leadership.

Richard Scott
Rich is a certified business coach and trainer with FocalPoint Business Coaching – Powered by Brian Tracy. He has coached, trained, consulted and presented to owners, leaders and team members from more than 15 countries worldwide.

He is an accomplished entrepreneur and sales & marketing professional with over 20 years of experience. He specializes helping professionals and practice owners attract new clients scale their business and automate parts of their operations.

When he isn’t working with clients, Rich enjoys riding, running, skiing and soccer. He has been married to his wife Tricia for close to 20 years. They have two children and in live in beautiful Langley, British Columbia, Canada.

Peter Austin
C.Arb

Peter Austin is a qualified Appraiser (AACI) and Chartered Arbitrator. In recent years he has specialized in Property Tax appeals and lease and strata arbitrations, acting as expert witness as well as arbitrator.

Mr. Austin has served on several Strata councils, professional and non-profit boards, including membership of the advisory committee to the Civil Resolution Tribunal, BCAMI Board and the Property Tax Association (National president in 2000). He has a degree in Real Estate and has lectured at Langara College and UBC.

Kari Boyle
Kari D. Boyle held various leadership positions with Mediate BC Society for the past 10 years and continues to use her legal, mediation and management experience to improve BC citizens’ access to viable and affordable conflict resolution options. She is also the Coordinator for the new BC Family Justice Innovation Lab. Previously, she practiced corporate commercial litigation in Vancouver for 14 years, worked inhouse for 6 years specializing in legal services management, led mediation research initiatives at UBC, and provided support to the Civil Justice Reform Working Group and the initiative to create a new set of Supreme Court Civil Rules in British Columbia.

Kent G. Woodruff
C. Arb., C. Med., LL.B.

Kent Woodruff practises in Kamloops. For the last 24 years he has restricted his practice to ADR in both the arbitration and mediation areas and sits as a BC Crop Insurance Appeal Arbitrator with over 90 arbitrations. He regularly organizes seminars for corporations on the power of consensus and mediation and uses both Arb-Med and Med-Arb dispute resolution when requested and when appropriate.

Bob Davidson
MBA

Bob Davidson has extensive experience in business, with a focus on business development, marketing and sales. He specializes in feasibility, strategy and planning, and is a dedicated problem solver. He has a unique ability to translate complex technical concepts into layman’s terms, which allows him to be the nexus between diverse groups of people to facilitate success.

Throughout his career, Bob has been a master at developing and nurturing long-term relationships. Personal contact and building relationships has been a constant element in his business development – in any situation.

Silver Beach Consulting brings together business acumen, economic development, First Nations engagement, government relations and expertise in the energy sector.

Bob works with First Nations and non-Aboriginal businesses to develop effective working relationships and identify mutually beneficial economic development opportunities.

An accomplished speaker and Distinguished Toastmaster, Bob volunteers as a public speaking coach.

Helmut Johannsen
Helmut K. Johannsen, P. Eng., C.Arb., FCIArb.

Helmut Johannsen’s legal practice includes all aspects of law and all types of contracts and projects relating to construction, engineering, procurement and infrastructure. He has acted as counsel on complex civil litigation cases and arbitrations, as well as sole arbitrator, dispute board member and chair of arbitration tribunals on disputes involving construction, engineering and technical matters. He also has considerable domestic and international experience in transactional work, including: strategic advice; risk mitigation; advising on project delivery systems; negotiating, drafting, tendering, awarding & interpreting contracts; insurance & bonding; and related mediation, arbitration & litigation for a wide range of projects including wind, thermal and hydro powerplants, transit projects, highways, marine facilities, pipelines, LNG facilities, and mining infrastructure. In addition to a lawyer he is a licensed Professional Engineer (BC) with a background in geotechnical, structural and municipal engineering. This complementary background, and ability to both read and understand technical drawings and specifications, is appreciated by clients, whether representing them directly or acting as arbitrator or other neutral in their disputes. He has represented owners and contractors in equal proportion over the years, as well as subcontractors, suppliers, architects and engineers, giving him a balanced perspective of the industry.

Helmut is a Chartered Arbitrator (ADR Institute of Canada), a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (UK), Member of the Dispute Resolution Board Foundation, a Fellow of the Canadian College of Construction Lawyers, a Fellow of the American College of Construction Lawyers, a Fellow of the International Academy of Construction Lawyers, a Vice‑Chair of the International Construction Projects Committee of the International Bar Association, and a director of the BC Arbitration & Mediation Institute.

Assunta de Ciantis
Assunta is a practicing lawyer, mediator and arbitrator. She has significant expertise in all aspects of family law and although her preference is to negotiate settlements, she is a skilled courtroom lawyer. She is currently diversifying her practice to include estates and general civil law. She speaks Italian and French, has a sound working knowledge of Spanish and is flexible in meeting her clients’ needs. In addition to her law practice, Assunta teaches legal procedure at Douglas College and Vancouver Community College.

Edwin Knight
Edwin Knight became a paralegal in Ontario with two years of civil, family and mediation training though Humber College, Toronto. He moved from teaching high school law and theatre to paralegal litigation to mediation opening a practice in 2004 in Ontario.

In 2013 Ed added training through JIBC and through the Institute of Divorce Financial Analysts to become a CDFA and BC Comprehensive Mediator through Family Mediation Canada, and Mediate BC. In the last three years, Mr. Knight has prepared financial reports for lawyers and their clients, mediators and their clients, and for his own clients in his mediation practice, AlberniMediation & CDFA. On the strength of Ed’s Dramatic Arts HBA and theatre training background, he has been working with Shaw TV to produce a Mediation Reality Show which will air several times a month and will provide the viewer with interactive options. Experts in mediation and Divorce Financial will be his guests and panel experts. Edwin has grown to believe and say,

“Get the numbers right first, then resolve.” And “The half you get makes all the difference.”

He will be presenting several family mediation case examples to illustrate these statements.

Christian Codrington
Christian has an extensive background contributing to organizations of all sizes. These include the Human Resources Management Association, Starbucks Coffee Canada, Best Buy Canada, Children’s and Women’s Health Centre of BC and Service Canada, formerly Employment and Immigration Canada.

While with the Human Resources Management Association, he led teams responsible for professional development, metrics and the office of the registrar for the CHRP designation. Christian was also responsible for government relations, starting the Association down its path to become a self-regulated profession. He has also appeared on dozens of radio, print and television features including the Vancouver Sun/Province, Globe & Mail, Business in Vancouver, Global News, CBC News, the Current, the Early Edition providing expert commentary on human resource related subjects.

In his previous roles he has been part of teams that developed a wide variety of solutions to a number of human resources challenges. And while in the certified environments he has negotiated, interpreted and managed within the parameters of many collective agreements, as well as represented each organization at numerous administrative tribunals, such as the Labour Relations Board, the Human Rights Tribunal and Small Claims.

Christian’s education includes an undergraduate degree in business from Simon Fraser University, concentrating in Organizational Behaviour, as well as certifications in Mediation and Conflict Resolution from the Justice Institute of BC.

He loves music and cooking for family and friends and nothing provides him more pleasure than playing guitar with his talented sons after a good meal. Christian also volunteers his time coaching children in a community basketball league.

Combining his skills, experiences and training, Christian has recently created Forum HCM. A consulting practice committed to simplifying human resources solutions for small and medium sized businesses. He is dedicated to effective people management and will continue to research, write, speak to and deliver his experiences to make workplaces better.

Mr. Justice Peter Leask, Supreme Court of British Columbia

View the speakers for the 2020 ADRBC Symposium!