Caroline Deane
Partner, Horne Coupar LLP
Caroline’s practice focuses on assisting clients with wills, corporate, trusts and estate planning needs with an emphasis on taxation. She previously worked as a senior tax analyst with the BC Provincial Government where she gained valuable insights into the creation and administration of tax statutes. Caroline completed the CICA In-Depth Tax Course and is co-author of the chapter Wills, Trusts, Estates and Adult Guardianship for CLEBC’s Annual Review of Law & Practice.
Putting Theory into Practice
Tamara L. Dewar
Partner, Hamilton Duncan
Tamara’s expertise lies in complex business litigation, family law, and estate disputes, having litigated numerous cases in British Columbia, California, Washington, and the U.S. Federal Courts. Her practice focuses on wills variation, inheritance disputes, undue influence and incapacity claims, unjust enrichment, committee applications and elder law. Tamara was named a Super Lawyers-Rising Star ranked in the top 2.5% of all lawyers in California under the age of 40.
Show Your Will Power & Year in Review
Jacob Harrigan
Associate, Farris LLP
Jacob is a dedicated litigator with extensive experience in estate litigation, commercial and civil disputes. He advocates for trustees, executors, business owners, shareholders, and beneficiaries in complex and high-stakes matters. In estate litigation, Jacob represents clients in will disputes, trust challenges, capacity and undue influence claims, contested accountings, and matters involving complex corporate and trust structures.
Year in Review
Raman Johal
Partner, Gowling WLG
Raman Johal co-leads Gowling WLG's Commercial Litigation Practice Group in Canada, with a practice focused on a wide range of estates, insurance, and commercial issues. Raman is sought after for her significant legal experience in complicated and contentious estates, such as incapacity and undue influence issues, wills variation claims, division of property matters, removal of executors, adult guardianship and elder abuse.
Safeguarding Against Elder Abuse
Alan Jordan
Associate, Horne Coupar LLP
Alan completed his articles with Horne Coupar LLP and was called to the British Columbia Bar in January of 2019. Following his articles, Alan quickly realized how much he enjoys estate work, assisting clients with estate planning and administration needs, challenging and defending wills, and incapacity planning. Alan has appeared successfully in both the Provincial Court of British Columbia and the Supreme Court of British Columbia.
Year in Review
Parveen Karsan
Founding Lawyer, Karsan Taw Law Corporation
Parveen has over two decades of experience advising entrepreneurs, professionals, and multigenerational families on complex tax and estate matters across Canada, including high-value estates, closely held corporations, cross-border structures, and family business succession. She brings a rare combination of tax law, estate planning, family enterprise advisory, and mediation credentials, addressing not only the technical structures that protect wealth, but the governance frameworks and family dynamics that sustain it across generations.
Optimal Tax Techniques
Sointula Kirkpatrick
Counsel, BC Ministry of Attorney General
Sointula has worked in the Legal Services Branch of the BC Ministry of Attorney General since 2006, operating as a charitable trusts litigator. She also serves as a tax litigator for the province. Prior to this, Sointula worked for the federal Department of Justice and the British Columbia Ministry of Finance.
Charitable Trusts Case by Case
Julia Lauwers
Associate General Counsel, Health Law & Disputes, Vancouver Coastal Health
Julia leads the portion of the in-house legal team consisting of litigation and litigation-adjacent lawyers practicing in the areas of health and regulatory law. Her practice focuses on medical affairs, adult guardianship, health care consent, mental health law and MAID. Julia is currently the Chair of the CBABC’s Health Law Section and will be an adjunct faculty member at UBC’s Allard Law in the fall of 2026, teaching a health law class.
Safeguarding Against Elder Abuse
Jennifer Leach Sandford
Partner, Horne Coupar LLP
Jennifer practices in the areas of trusts, estates, and tax planning, and represents clients in interactions with tax authorities. She has a special interest in employing mediation to avoid or resolve estate disputes. She was an accredited mediator in Quebec and worked with a boutique law firm specializing in tax, trust and estate matters for over ten years. Jennifer is also a Full Member of STEP Canada as a registered Trust and Estate Practitioner (T.E.P).
Optimal Tax Techniques
Monique Shebbeare
Tax &
Estate Planner, TD Wealth
Monique applies her experience in estate, trust and tax planning to assist clients in developing estate plans that reflect their choices for the future. Prior to joining TD Wealth, Monique ran a solo law practice in wills and estates, as well as fertility law with a focus on donor, surrogacy and multi-parent agreements. Monique is a contributor to the CLEBC Wills and Personal Planning Precedents: An Annotated Guide and the Annotated Family Practice and presents on the overlap of fertility and estate law.
Modern Family Structures and Intricacies
Jeanine Tang
Senior
Counsel, TD Bank
Jeanine has worked as a lawyer in the financial services industry for 8 years. Her practice focuses primarily on complex customer issues and complaints involving powers of attorney, estates, trusts, registered plans, substitute decision makers, senior and vulnerable clients, financial abuse, and banking operations across common law and civil law jurisdictions in Canada. She is a member of the Law Society of Ontario and holds the Trust and Estates Practitioner designation from STEP Canada.
Safeguarding Against Elder Abuse
Sarah Weber
Partner, Hamilton Duncan
Sarah is an experienced litigator, representing clients in a broad range of cases including challenges to estate plans, variation of wills and trusts, abuse of powers of attorney and trustee breach claims, passing of executor and trustee accounts, committeeship proceedings and asset disputes. Sarah is a recognized trusts and estates specialist as an associate member of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP).
Show Your Will Power
Geoffrey White, KC
Counsel, Clark Wilson LLP
Geoffrey’s practice of 20+ years has formed his deep knowledge of the rules and laws that apply to wills, estates, trusts and related tax. He is a Certified Trust and Estate Practitioner and editor for BC’s Estate Probate Manual, and participated in the implementation of the Wills, Estates and Succession Act. He regularly trains other professionals in the field, including accountants, trust officers, financial planners and insurance advisors.
The Digital Side of Estate Planning
Chelsea Wilson
Associate Counsel, RLR Lawyers
Chelsea practices exclusively in the areas of wills, estates and trusts, assisting clients with estate planning, administration and litigation. Before joining Ramsay Lampman Rhodes in 2010, she worked at Lawson Lundell LLP and at Legacy Tax + Trust Lawyers in Vancouver. Chelsea regularly writes and presents on a variety of estate-related topics and is a strong believer in the importance of giving back to the community and the profession.
Putting Theory into Practice
Catherine J. Wong
Lawyer
& Mediator, Daykin Walker Kaderly Wahid LLP
Catherine has practiced exclusively in the areas of family and fertility law since 2012 and is a Family Law Mediator and Collaborative Lawyer. She has experience with many unique issues including those in the areas of reproductive technology, adoption, and multi-parent and polyamorous parentage. Catherine is a regular presenter on family and fertility law matters and how the law intersects with non-traditional families.
Modern Family Structures and Intricacies
