I have been involved in the movement for equality for gays and lesbians since the early 1970s. When I first got involved it was through the Gay Alliance Toward Equality. I was active in SEARCH and then the Vancouver Gay and Lesbian Centre, serving as president for several years. I am an honourary life member of the Centre. I was a member of the Celebration 90: Gay Games board for the Vancouver Gay Games. I was cofounder of the Gay and Lesbian Rights Section of the B. C. branch of the Canadian Bar Association. I have been involved in organizing many conferences around gay and lesbian issues, including a series of provincial conferences in the 1980s. Most notably I was cochair of the 1992 Canadian national conference on gay and lesbian issues called “Outrights”. I have been active in AIDS issues throughout the epidemic, including fighting the B. C. government when it considered quarantining PWAs in the early 80s. I continue to work with and advise AIDS support organizations.

I am occasionally published on topics of gay and lesbian concerns and speak in workshops and at panels dealing with our issues. I have been a guest lecturer at the University of British Columbia and University of Victoria Law Schools. Most recently I was part of a panel discussing gay rights cases and the Supreme Court of Canada at McGill University in Montreal.

I served as a member of the Board of Governors of the Legal Services Society of B. C. in 1994 and on the Board of Governors of the Vancouver Community College from 1998 – 2002, including as Vice Chair.

In 2001 I received the SOGIC Hero Award from the Canadian Bar Association for exceptional contribution to the cause of equality rights.

I am currently a member of the Gay and Lesbian Business Association of Greater Vancouver and the President of the B. C. Human Rights Coalition, where I have served for 6 years.

I have been practicing law since 1978, having articled with the Legal Aid Society of B. C. and worked as a staff lawyer there before setting up my own firm in 1984 with Rob Hughes. My practice has been fairly general with an emphasis on areas affecting gays and lesbians. I work with many charitable organizations in the gay and lesbian communities. I do a lot of work in the area of Wills and Estates. I have also represented various clients in many of the gay rights cases that have reached the Courts of Appeal and the Supreme Court in Canada. Many of the cases I have done are mentioned in the Firm Profile. Cases I am currently involved in are the Class Action law suit for survivor’s benefits under the Canada Pension Plan and the Same Sex Marriage Reference.

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• Partner at Smith & Hughes receives human rights award. View artcicle here.