Government of Canada announces judicial appointments in the province of British Columbia

June 24, 2019 – Ottawa, Ontario – Department of Justice Canada  

The Honourable David Lametti, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, today announced the following appointments under the new judicial application process introduced on October 20, 2016. The new process emphasizes transparency, merit, and diversity, and will continue to ensure the appointment of jurists who meet the highest standards of excellence and integrity.

Alan M. Ross, Partner at Alexander Holburn Beaudin + Lang LLP in Vancouver, is appointed a Judge of the Supreme Court of British Columbia. Mr. Justice Ross replaces Mr. Justice R. Sewell, who elected to become a supernumerary judge effective January 22, 2019.

Sheila Tucker, Q.C., Counsel at Shapray Cramer Fitterman Lamer LLP in Vancouver, is appointed a Judge of the Supreme Court of British Columbia. Madam Justice Tucker replaces Madam Justice B.J. Brown, who elected to become a supernumerary judge effective February 19, 2019.

David A. Crerar, Partner at Borden Ladner Gervais LLP in Vancouver, is appointed a Judge of the Supreme Court of British Columbia. Mr. Justice Crerar replaces Mr. Justice P. Abrioux, who was elevated to the Court of Appeal on March 7, 2019.

Biographies

Justice Ross was raised in Victoria. He obtained his B.A., with a double major in English and History, from the University of Victoria in 1984, and he obtained his LL.B from the University of British Columbia in 1988.

Justice Ross articled at the firm of Douglas Symes & Brissenden, then practised civil litigation at that firm until 2000. Along with five other partners, he joined Alexander Holburn Beaudin + Lang LLP, where he practised civil litigation, with an emphasis on insurance defence litigation, for the past 18 years. 

Justice Ross was President of the Vancouver Bar Association (1998), President of the Lawyers Inn Society (2003–10), a Bencher of the Law Society of British Columbia (2011–12) and the Chair of the Board of the British Columbia Courthouse Library Society (2014–19).

He and his wife, Jacqueline, have two children.

Justice Tucker was born and raised in Revelstoke, British Columbia. She received a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature in 1986 and a Bachelor of Laws in 1991, both from the University of British Columbia. She obtained a Master of Laws from Harvard Law School in 1992 and was called to the bar of British Columbia in 1993. She began her career in the area of administrative law, practising at several national law firms and, for a time, serving as in-house legal counsel for the British Columbia Labour Relations Board.

For the last decade, a substantial portion of her practice focused on public law, including Charter litigation. Beginning in 2016, she practised general litigation and public law at Shapray Cramer Fitterman Lamer LLP, with an emphasis on legal research and analysis.

Justice Tucker is a past co-chair of the Human Rights Section of the British Columbia Branch of the Canadian Bar Association. She was awarded the British Columbia Civil Liberties Association’s Liberty Award for Excellence in Legal Advocacy in 2013, and the Canadian Bar Association (B.C. Branch) Harry Rankin, QC, Pro Bono Award in 2016. She was designated Queen’s Counsel in 2016.

Justice Crerar was born in Vancouver and grew up in North Vancouver. He received his B.A. and LL.B from the University of Toronto and was called to the bar of British Columbia in 1998. He was the national leader of the firm’s Defamation and Media Group, also practising in shareholder disputes, Internet litigation, and banking and pension litigation.

He is the author of Mareva and Anton Piller Orders in Canada (Irwin), and the co-editor and co-author of the leading Canadian text on civil procedure, The Civil Litigation Process (Emond), and British Columbia Business Disputes (BC CLE). He is a contributing author to BC Creditors’ Remedies and the BC Civil Trial Handbook. He has published numerous articles on various legal topics and has contributed to many legal education conferences. Among these, he created the BC CLE Litigator’s Arsenal, chairing six conferences. He also co-authored The Glorious Mountains of Vancouver’s North Shore, a hiking and historic guide (RMB).

From 2004 to 2018 he was an Adjunct Professor at the University of British Columbia Faculty of Law, lecturing in civil procedure. Justice Crerar served on the Boards of the Vancouver International Marathon Society and the Canadian Media Lawyers’ Association, and he has volunteered with Access Pro Bono and the BC Civil Liberties Association, among others.

Outside of the law, his passions are outdoor adventures with his four children, as well as long-distance road and trail running. He is married to Julia Lawn, a law partner at Nathanson Schachter & Thompson LLP.