Submitted by Section Chair Rolf Warburton
Summary of Activities
Number of Meetings Held: 4
October 22, 2010
Guest Speaker: Keith Hamilton, QC, Policy Counsel for the Cohen Commission
An overview of career paths leading to commission policy research, various commission structures and how they affect research planning and anecdotal experiences serving as commission research counsel. Co-hosted with the Legal Research Section.
November 30, 2010
Guest Speaker: Lieutenant-Colonel Randall Callan, Assistant Judge Advocate General (Pacific)
Lt.-Col. Callan presented on his experience serving as military legal advisor during Operation Podium supporting the Vancouver Winter Olympics. The presentation included a review of relevant domestic international legal principles and the legal basis for Canadian Forces participation and the relationship with domestic law enforcement.
June 10, 2011
Guest Speaker: Catherine Tully, Assistant Commissioner, Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner
Assistant Commissioner Tully presented an update on current issues under the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act and the Personal Information Protection Act with specific emphasis on recent jurisprudence and issues of particular concern to lawyers in public practice, including open disclosure.
June 24, 2011
Guest Speakers: Steve Fudge, BC Crown Counsel Association; Sandra Wilkinson, Legal Services Branch Lawyers Association; Mary French, Association of Justice Counsel
A panel discussion of current employment issues facing public sector lawyers and some of the challenges and opportunities faced by various employee associations.
Comments and Observations of the Chair
It was a pleasure to serve on the Executive of this Section. Meeting the interests of our very diverse membership continues to be a challenge given the variety of legal practice represented. However, many of our topics interested practitioners despite the subject matter being outside their daily experience. We successfully co-hosted an event with another Section, invited other Sections to our events and were invited to other Sections' meetings (e.g. FOI, Human Rights, Administrative, International Law etc.) This reflects the overlap in mandates between our Section and others and it is a goal of the new, incoming executive to continue to exploit these synergies over the coming year. The Public Sector Lawyers Section continues to offer an important nexus for public sector lawyers to communicate and collaborate on both employment and legal issues unique to their practices.