Practice Areas: Wills and Estates

John Michael Orr

Mr. Michael F. Welsh

Professional Experience

I am a lawyer with 40 years of litigation experience, having been lead counsel on over a thousand hearings, trials and appeals in all levels of court in this province and in the Supreme Court of Canada, including some 50 formally reported decisions and well over 100 posted on CanLii. Through my professional experience and as a member of professional, wine industry and community organizations I am well-versed in in problem and dispute resolution and in understanding and working with people in difficult situations toward a positive outcome. An effective communicator, I have the ability to assess problems expeditiously and to relate to people from all walks of life. As one who sees life as an opportunity to learn, I never let my mind get stale, but rather seek to educate myself in a wide range of areas. I have taken that learning and passed it on writing, including articles in the Advocate, Bartalk and Canadian Arbitration and Mediation Journal magazines, as author of the Advocate Wine Column and serving as a faculty member in many continuing legal educational conferences and seminars. I have also authored a number of decisions for the BCCRT and Law Society.
Dispute Resolution Experience and Training

  • Family Law Arbitration LAW SOCIETY OF BC (July, 2013)
  • Family Law Mediation LAW SOCIETY OF BC (August, 2013)
  • Arbitration Part II – Conduct of Arbitration Proceedings, ADR Institute
    of BC (October 2012) – 95% grade
  • Arbitration Part III – Arbitration Workshop, ADR Institute of BC
    (November 2011) – 98% grade
  • Advanced Civil Mediation, CLEBC (February 1997)
  • Family Law Mediation, CLEBC (July 1997)
  • Numerous other workshops, seminars, conferences, symposiums as presenter
    and participant.
Professional and Other Activities

  • 2017 – Appointed Queen’s Counsel, province of British Columbia
  • 2016-2017 – President, Canadian Bar Association, BC Branch
  • 2015-2016 – President, ADR Institute of British Columbia
  • 2018-present – Bencher, Law Society of British Columbia
  • 2015 – Chartered Mediator (C.Med.) ADR Institute of Canada
  • 2013 – Certified family Mediator (C.Fam Arb.) ADR Institute of British Columbia
  • 2020 – Chartered Arbitrator (C.Arb.) ADR Institute of Canada
  • 2011 – Fellow (FCIArb.) International Institute of Arbitrators – London, UK
    Certified family mediator and family law arbitrator: Law Society of BC
Academic Qualifications

B.A. (cum laude in philosophy): Cornell University, 1975
LL.B. University of British Columbia, 1980

Marvin R.V. Storrow

Professional Experience

Mr. Storrow is a senior litigation partner involved in arbitration, mediation, civil and criminal law. His expertise includes general commercial litigation, personal injury, native claims, general commercial litigation, criminal law, environmental law, “White Collar Crime”, anti-dumping and international trade cases

His practice has involved numerous appearances at all levels of the provincial and federal court systems, including numerous appearances before the Supreme Court of Canada. Mr. Storrow was counsel on the leading First Nations cases of Guerin v. Her Majesty the Queen, R. v. Sparrow, Roberts v. The Queen, and R. v. Gladstone at all court levels along with a number of aboriginal rights and other leading Canadian cases including Apsassin, DelgamuukwandErmineskin v. Her Majesty the Queen. Three of his cases have been ranked by Canadian legal scholars as among the top 15 most important cases in Canadian legal history.

Mr. Storrow has conducted several trials at all Court levels in the Northwest Territories and in every province of Canada except Prince Edward Island.

Mr. Storrow’s cases appear approximately 500 times in various Canadian legal reports.

Mr. Storrow is recognized annually in The Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory as one of the leading lawyers in Canada.
Dispute Resolution Experience and Training

Mr. Storrow has been involved with a wide variety of litigious matters and alternative dispute resolution matters over the past 47 years.

  • Arbitrator since approximately 1985
  • Chartered Arbitrator – ADR Institute of Canada
  • Member of the arbitrator panels of the British Columbia International Commercial Arbitration Centre, the British Columbia Arbitration and Mediation Institute and the Alternative Dispute Resolution Institute of Canada
Professional and Other Activities

  • Recipient of the Chief Justice James Valentine Milvain, Visiting Chair in Advocacy (University of Calgary) in 1987. This Award is awarded to a leading Canadian barrister.
  • The Georges A. Goyer, Q.C. Award for exceptional contributions to the legal profession.
  • Mr. Storrow was awarded the University of British Columbia Alumni Association’s Lifetime Achievement Award. This Award is given to recognize an extraordinary individual who through a lifetime of outstanding service and contribution to the community has demonstrated the true spirit of the Association’s mission.
  • Mr. Storrow has received an LL.D. (honoris causa) Doctorate Degree from the Justice Institute of British Columbia.

Mr. Storrow has written and lectured on a number of “White Collar Crime”, “Aboriginal Rights”, “Medicare in Canada” “Child Pornography” and several other matters and acted as defence counsel in one of Canada’s first money laundering cases.

Mr. Storrow has been a frequent lecturer and conference co-ordinator for both the Continuing Legal Education Society of B.C. and the University of British Columbia Law School. He has delivered lectures and chaired panels both inside and outside of Canada as well as at the University of Victoria, School of Public Administration; Canadian Institute for the Administration of Justice; The International Centre for Criminal Law Reform & Criminal Justice Policy, Canada; Trial Lawyers Association of British Columbia and Pacific Business & Law Institute, the University of Calgary Law School and Pacific Business & Law.
Academic Qualifications

University of British Columbia, LL.B., 1962
Admitted to the British Columbia, Alberta and Northwest Territories Bars

Mark Lee Tweedy

 

Professional Experience

Mark was called to the BC Bar in 1982. He practiced as a trial lawyer for many years. He has worked exclusively as mediator, arbitrator, and adjudicator since 2014.

Mark has mediated hundreds civil claims in a wide variety of subject areas. He has particular expertise in, and enjoys, mediating disputes where there is high emotional content. He received his Chartered Mediator designation in 2017.

Mark’s arbitration experience includes under insured motorist claims, and commercial, and insurance disputes. He also has substantial experience sitting as a court appointed adjudicator in class action matters.

Mark also has also frequently served as a locum, which has more often engaged his skills as a mediator than his skills as counsel. His involvement in this work came about as a result of his volunteer work with the Lawyers Assistance Program, which he commenced in 2002. In that capacity he has also assisted in interventions, acted as counsel to lawyers in discipline, credentials, and practice standards matters before the Law Society of British Columbia, and acted as a peer counselor to other lawyers.

Mark is a frequent lecturer to professional and industry groups on ADR topics, and has co taught CLEBC’s “Fundamentals of Mediation” to lawyers wishing to become mediators.
Professional and Other Activities

  • Law Society of British Columbia, 1982 to date, currently non-practicing
  • Mediate BC, Civil Roster Member, 2004 to date
  • British Columbia International Commercial Arbitration Center, Mediation, Domestic Arbitration, and UMP Panel Member, 2013 to date
  • ADRBC, Mediation Panel Member, 2016 to date
  • Volunteer, St. James Music Academy, 2017-2018
  • Board Member, Lawyers Assistance Program of BC, 2015 to date
  • Volunteer, Lawyers Assistance Program of BC, 2004 to date
  • Volunteer, First United Church, Hastings and Gore, Vancouver, BC, various dates
  • Board Member, Canadian Memorial United Church, Vancouver, BC, 2007 to 2010
  • Board Member, the grunt gallery, Vancouver, BC, 2010 to 2012
Academic Qualifications

  • Justice Institute of British Columbia, various courses in Conflict Resolution and Mediation, 2004 and 2007
  • University of British Columbia, B.A. (Hons.), 1978
  • University of British Columbia, LL. B., 1981
  • United World College of the Atlantic, South Wales, UK, International Baccalaureate, 1975

 

Mr. Robert M. Smith

Professional Experience

Robert M. Smith, Esq., has more than 20 years of commercial litigation and trial experience. He was responsible for overseas litigation worldwide at Bank of America. Subsequently, he had his own commercial litigation firm representing three dozen financial institutions. Prior to law school, Mr. Smith was a correspondent in the Washington Bureau of the New York Times.

Mr. Smith is a Barrister (Inner Temple, Lincoln’s Inn) in the UK. He is admitted to the Bars of California, New York, and the District of Columbia. He is fluent in French and German, and speaks intermediate Spanish.

Mr. Smith has commercial law experience that includes such matters as: high-tech lending, sexual harassment, computer license disputes, project finance, international letters of credit, construction disputes, insurance coverage, and personal injury.
Dispute Resolution Experience and Training

Robert M. Smith has been an arbitrator and mediator for more than 20 years. He has mediated hundreds of complex matters in a wide range of subject areas and in many jurisdictions. He was Director of Mediation at CEDR (Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution) in London, as well as a Registered Mediator and Chartered Arbitrator in the UK. He has lectured on ADR widely—at the Law Faculty of Oxford University, the United Nations in Turin, Nairobi, Warsaw, Dublin, Singapore, and Amsterdam. He is the author of ADR for Financial Institutions (West Group, 2d ed. 1998, 1200 pp.).

Mr. Smith has completed more than 400 hours of mediation/arbitration training and teaching, including:

  • Practicum for Experienced Mediators, CDR Associates, Boulder, Colorado, 09/1994, 32 hours
  • Mediation Seminar, Stanford Law School, Palo Alto, California, 06/1994, 20 hours
  • Mediation Training, American Academy of Attorney-Mediators, Oakland, California, 01/1993, 15 hours
  • Mediation Training, American Arbitration Association, San Francisco, California, 01/1993, 15 hours
  • Mediation & ADR Training, National Institute for Trial Advocacy, Denver, Colorado, 09/1992, 24 hours

Mr. Smith’s mediation style depends on the wishes of the parties and counsel, and his sense of what is appropriate and likely to be effective.

Mr. Smith has more than 250 references from law firms and corporate and government law departments on five continents. For more representative matters, expanded biography, references and testimonials, please see www.robertmsmith.com
Professional and Other Activities

Mr. Smith serves, or has served, as a mediator or arbitrator on the following panels:

  • UN’s World Intellectual Property Organization in Geneva, Switzerland
  • the World Bank
  • London Court of International Arbitration
  • Arbitration Subcommittee to the U.S. Council for International Business
  • Centre de Médiation et d’Arbitrage de Paris (CMAP) – Médiateur Agréé
  • Center for Public Resources, Panel of Distinguished Neutrals

Mr. Smith has been elected a Fellow of:

  • the American College of Civil Trial Mediators
  • the Hong Kong Institute of Arbitrators
  • the International Academy of Mediators
Academic Qualifications

JD, Yale Law School (Board of Editors, Yale Law Journal)
MS in Journalism with High Honors, Columbia University
MA in International Affairs, Columbia University
Diploma Sobresaliente, Centro de Estudios de Español (Barcelona)
Fulbright Scholar, University of Tübingen (Germany)
AB with Honors, Harvard College

Kent G. Woodruff

 

Professional Experience

  • 1972-1991- General practice in Kamloops
  • 1991-1997-Litigation Counsel, insurance, land compensation, commercial leases, contractual, construction (court & arbitration) and appeared before Federal and Provincial administrative tribunals
  • For the last 21 years restricted his practice to alternate dispute resolution.
Dispute Resolution Experience and Training

Mediation experience:

  • Mediated over 300 commercial disputes – personal injury, estates, insurance, partnership, construction, strata, environmental damage, property, farm & ranch, forestry, intergovernmental, ALR Community Issues, workplace , Work safe Discrimination

Arbitration experience:

  • 1996 – 2008 adjudicated Residential Tenancy Disputes
  • Conducted domestic commercial arbitrations involving strata, employment, sale of businesses, commercial leases (renewals and other disputes), farms, forestry disputes, insurance (including Referee and UMP coverage), joint ventures, partnerships, professional negligence, construction and corporate disputes.
  • The appointed Appeal Arbitrator under the Canada – British Columbia Crop Insurance Program

Alternate Dispute Resolution Training:

  • Provided alternate resolution training to companies, organizations and the government of BC.
  • Developed and taught the Thompson Rivers University course entitled Conflict Resolution in the Environment

Chartered Mediator, 2001
Chartered Arbitrator, 1994
McGowan Award of Excellence –ADR Institute of Canada, 2000
Professional and Other Activities

  • A Past President of the ADR Institute of Canada and of the British Columbia Arbitration and Mediation Institute
  • A British Columbia International Commercial Centre Trustee

Member:

  • British Columbia Arbitration & Mediation Institute
  • Kamloops Fly Fishers Association
  • British Columbia Wildlife Association
  • Kamloops and District Fish & Game Association
  • Wild Sheep Society of BC
  • Kamloops Bar Association
Academic Qualifications

University of Ottawa, B. Comm., 1963
University of Western Ontario, B.L., 1972
Called to the British Columbia Bar in 1973

Mr. John W. Norton

Professional Experience

Mr. Norton has practiced business law for over 30 years and during the last 10 years has also acted as counsel and chair in various arbitrations relating to major business issues and real estate matters.

He is known for his practical and strategic approach to legal and business problems. Mr. Norton practices law in the area of mergers & acquisitions and divestitures, corporate governance and commercial law.

Mr. Norton has extensive experience in real estate development law and venture capital law.

He also acted Counsel on behalf of the Vancouver International Airport Authority, Department of Justice, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada, and United Van Lines. He was finance Chairman for Doug Mowatt, and he is Chairman of Universal Packaging Inc.
Professional and Other Activities

Mr. Norton is a member of a number of Canadian and International Associations, and is an International Associate of the American Bar Association;

  • The Law Society of British Columbia
  • The Canadian Bar Association
  • ADR Institute of Canada
  • British Columbia International Commercial Arbitration Centre

Mr. Norton has been a director of numerous companies and advisory boards, including B.C. Housing Management Commission, Downtown Vancouver Association, Yaletown Housing Society, Vancouver Neurological Centre, Shaughnessy Golf & Country Club, St. George’s School Foundation, Shawnigan Lake School Board of Governors, Thunderbird Golf Society, Pacific Parkinson Research Institute, Air Canada Championship, Order of St. John Palliative Care Foundation, as well as many closely held corporations.
Academic Qualifications

B. Comm., University of British Columbia, 1968
LL.B., University of British Columbia, 1969
Chartered Arbitrator, 1990

Herbert S. Silber

Professional Experience

Herb Silber was the senior litigation partner with Kornfeld Mackoff Silber and is now Associate Counsel at Kornfeld LLP. Herb’s career in litigation has primarily focused on real estate and contract litigation, lease arbitration and employment law. He co-counselled one of the largest commercial fraud cases in Canadian history, which included precedent-setting decisions on directors’ liability. Herb’s securities and corporate litigation experience includes shareholder oppression actions, proxy fights, and fraud claims. His successes in this area have resulted in decisions that have influenced corporate law and damage recovery principles. Herb’s employment law practice includes appearances as counsel in many wrongful dismissal trials and appeals, negotiations for severance packages and advising on group terminations. Herb has regularly appeared in both the Supreme Court of British Columbia and the British Columbia Court of Appeal.

Herb has increasingly taken on the role of arbitrator and mediator in commercial disputes. He is a graduate of an intense five-day mediation workshop organized by the Harvard University, School of Negotiation. Herb brings to an arbitration or mediation a strong combination of experience, knowledge and understanding of the goals to be achieved.

Herb was a member of the Board of Governors of the British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT) from 2013 to July 31, 2018. He has been a long time member of the Audit and Finance Committee and a representative of the Board on the BCIT Foundation, which both manages assets for BCIT and raises private donations. In 2014, on the recommendation of the Justice Minister for the Government of British Columbia, Herb was appointed Queen’s Counsel in recognition of his distinguished legal career. From 2012 to 2018, Herb was a member of the BC Health Professions Review Board, appointed by the Province of B.C. The Review Board is an Administrative Tribunal established to provide independent reviews of certain decisions of self-governing health professional colleges.

Herb has also served for many years on the boards and as an executive of a variety of non-profit organizations.
Dispute Resolution Experience and Training

  • Counsel on many Arbitration cases involving Real Estate and Contract law in particular.
  • Has also been either the sole Arbitrator or part of a panel on many cases in those practice areas as well as a Mediator.
  • Graduate of Harvard Negotiation Institute on Mediation.
  • As a member of the Health Profession Review Board was Chair and member of a panel on both written and oral hearings,  he wrote many decisions, and participated in successful mediations.
  • Admitted as a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, FCIArb.
Professional and Other Activities

  • Rated by peers as BV by Martindale and Hubbell for many years.
  • Designated Queen’s Counsel in 2014.
  • Lectured at CLE program on Directors Liability.
  • Edited several articles published in the Advocate and other Publications.
  • A long time member of the Canadian Bar Association.
  • Organized and appeared as panel participant at BCMAI Symposium on arbitration-related topics.
  • Written a Blog for several years for clients and lawyers on Dispute Resolution issues.
  • Organized seminars with law firms to present on benefits of arbitration.
  • Written articles on Arbitration for VanIAC (formerly BCICAC) published in the “Advocate”.
Academic Qualifications

Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, FCIArb.

Graduate of the Harvard Negotiation Institute on Mediation

Osgoode Hall Law School, York University, LLB

University of British Columbia, BA

Dhandapani Saravanan

Professional Experience

D. Saravanan completed Degree in Law from University of Madras and enrolled himself as an advocate in the Bar Council of Tamil Nadu in the year 1992 and he was trained under the eminent senior lawyer Sri.K.T.Palpandian. He has been practicing in the Chartered High Court of Judicature at Madras in various fields like, Civil (Original & Appellate Side), Criminal (Limited Area), Constitution, Labour & Service, Insurance, Banking, Consumer, Rent Control Laws, Accident Claims, Arbitration & IPR. Considerable cases, in which he appeared as counsel, were reported in leading Regional Law Journals.

He has appeared as lead and co-counsel in numerous domestic and international arbitration proceedings concerning the disputes relating to construction, joint ventures, financial services, international trade, employment disputes, property, maritime, shipbuilding, franchises, investment, on and Offshore contracts, securities and general contractual matters.
Dispute Resolution Experience and Training

D. Saravanan has been accredited as Arbitrator/Neutral by various international leading and renowned arbitral bodies, such as, ICDR of American Arbitration Association, WIPO (Switzerland), CRCICA ( Egypt ), NAI (The Netherlands), CEPANI (Belgium), DOMPCA, AIAC (Malaysia), DIAC (Duabi) and many Arbitration Institutions in Poland, Lithuania, Ghana, Philippines, Switzerland, Italy, Monaco and Bahrain including Indian arbitral bodies, such as, CNICA, ICADR, FACT, East Indian Cotton Association, Goa Chamber of Commerce and Industry, etc., He is also an empaneled arbitrator in various public sector undertakings of the Government of India.

He has been empanelled as Arbitrator by the National Internet Exchange of India (Government of India Organization under the Ministry of Information Technology) and resolving .IN domain name disputes. He has resolved many domain name disputes involving international trade marks, such as, Kellys Blue Book, Kingston, NBA Sports, Kentucky Fried Chicken, Microsoft, etc., under National Arbitration Forum (NAF), USA and Asian Domain Disputes Resolution (ADNDRC).
Professional and Other Activities

D. Saravanan is also one of the founder trustees and Chairman of an arbitration centre, namely, Council for National and International Commercial Arbitration (CNICA- www.cnica.org) and CNICA Mediation Center, under the agies of a non-profit Trust called Trust for Alternative Disputes Resolution.

He has undergone a training programme in Workplace conflicts in U.S.A. and also a mediation training programme conducted by the High Court of Madras annexed Tamilnadu Mediation and Conciliation. He has been accredited as mediator by the High Court, Chennai, Labour Courts, Chennai, Small Causes Courts for accidents claims, Chennai, Family Courts, Chennai and Courts in Trichy District. As mediator, he was able to assist the disputants to arrive at an amicable settlement in or about 200 disputes so far.

He is a trainer for arbitrators and mediators and trained many in-house arbitrators concerning public sector undertakings of Government of India. He is a regular speaker on arbitration in various institutions, associations, organizations, chambers of commerce, etc. and he has attended several conferences, seminars and workshops. His articles on arbitration have been published in various journals and he is one of the co-authors on the compilation of case laws rendered by Supreme Court of India on Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996.
Academic Qualifications

Degree in Law, University of Madras, India (1992)
Bar Council of Tamil Nadu, Roll No.375 of 1992

Kathryn S. Sainty

Professional Experience

  • Kathryn was called to the Bar of British Colombia in 1986 following which she practiced in a variety of firms in the Vancouver area.
  • While in private practice, Kathryn gained experience in a wide variety of areas including family, corporate/ commercial, real estate, entertainment and securities law.
  • In 1997 Kathryn left private practice to 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 at New Westminster and in 2010 she became the Registrar of the Supreme Court of British Columbia.
  • Kathryn has a long-standing interest in consensual dispute resolution. She obtained her mediation training at Harvard Law School (Program on Negotiation) in 2012 and through the American Arbitration Association University in 2013. Kathryn is an accredited “family dispute resolution professional” (mediator and arbitrator) by the Law Society of British Columbia and a member of the Mediate BC Civil Roster.
  • Kathryn is an experienced adjudicator (former Registrar of the Supreme Court 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.
  • Kathryn retired from the Supreme Court in June 2014 and returned to private practice where she now works full time as a mediator and arbitrator in a wide range of areas including business disputes, personal injury and insurance claims, wills and estates litigation, family law matters, and wrongful dismissal and employment disputes. Kathryn also provides litigation consulting services to lawyers in areas in which she has a particular expertise such as family law, Legal Profession Act matters, and the areas of bankruptcy, costs and wills and estates.
  • Kathryn is a much sought after presenter. She has spoken to groups on many occasions on the subjects of costs, review of lawyer’s bills, bankruptcy, family law, law practice management and client relations. Kathryn has been praised for her “direct yet approachable demeanor”; others have remarked on the excellent quality of her “practical and useful tips and information” and “very concise and thorough” presentations. She brings those skills to her arbitration, mediation, and litigation consulting practice.
Dispute Resolution Experience and Training

  • CIArb – Chartered Institute of Arbitrators – Member
  • British Columbia International Commercial Arbitration Centre – Panelist – Domestic and Mediation
  • Mediate BC Civil Roster
  • Family Dispute Resolution Professional (Mediator) – Law Society of British Columbia
  • Family Dispute Resolution Professional (Arbitrator) – Law Society of British Columbia
  • Essential Skills for the New Mediator – American Arbitration Association University (December 2013)
  • Domestic Violence Screening Training (June 2013)
  • Mediating Disputes – Harvard Law School, Program on Negotiation (June 2012)
  • Arbitration Training Institute – American Bar Association (February 2011)
Professional and Other Activities

Kathryn Sainty is an experienced lawyer specializing in arbitration, mediation and litigation consulting. She has a broad mix of skills and background from private practice in family, corporate/commercial, real estate entertainment and securities law and 14 years experience as a registrar of the Supreme Court of British Columbia presiding over hearings dealing with a wide range of subject matters.

Kathryn has a passion for consensual dispute resolution (CDR), for learning and training others. Kathryn strives to continually learn and to assist others in their own professional growth.

Kathryn has recently published (with Christopher Hope) a book on costs and disbursements and has contributed to several Continuing Legal Education Society of British Columbia publications.

Kathryn believes in giving back to her community. She is a member of several professional organisations and has been and is a director of a number of non-profit organisations. She is recognised by her peers as an effective presenter and is often called upon to speak to groups, including on the areas of professional ethics and responsibilities.
Academic Qualifications

University of British Columbia, Faculty of Law, JD (1985)
University of Toronto, Trinity College, BA (Economics) (1981)
International Baccalaureate Diploma (1977), Lester B. Pearson College of the Pacific, Victoria, BC