Hunter Litigation Chambers > Firm Profile

Hunter Litigation Chambers is routinely recognised as one of the premier dispute resolution firms in British Columbia. Ranked partners Randy Kaardal QC, Claire Hunter QC, Mike Stephens, Mark Oulton and Brent Olthuis are each consistently identified in peer-review publications as leading counsel across various litigation-related categories. Senior counsel Bill Smart QC, one of the province’s most notable criminal lawyers and a Fellow of both the American College of Trial Lawyers and the International Society of Barristers, adds expertise in the criminal law realm as well as in corporate and regulatory matters.

The firm’s expertise is rounded out at the senior level by Associate Counsel Martin Taylor QC, one of Canada’s leading counsel and adjudicators over the past 50 years.

With deep talent at the associate level, including many former judicial clerks, the firm has the depth and capability to handle the full range of commercial disputes and class actions (including in the anti-trust and product liability areas), as well as matters across a broad spectrum encompassing professional negligence, natural resources, labour and employment, defamation, public and constitutional law, Aboriginal law, and criminal and quasi-criminal prosecutions. In addition to their respective practices before trial courts, administrative and arbitral tribunals, counsel at Hunter Litigation Chambers appear regularly in the Court of Appeal for British Columbia and the Supreme Court of Canada, and in the Federal Court and Federal Court of Appeal.

Main areas of practice

Commercial litigation: this is a primary practice area for Hunter Litigation Chambers. All of the counsel in the firm practice in this domain.

In addition to the experience of the firm’s senior lawyers, the junior and intermediate counsel are developing strong reputations as competent and creative commercial counsel. The firm is able to assemble a team capable of handling commercial matters of any size and complexity.

Class actions: Randal Kaardal QC, Michael Stephens, Brent Olthuis and Claire Hunter have extensive experience in this field.

Products liability: counsel from Hunter Litigation Chambers have a history of handling a variety of complex products liability matters involving failed or allegedly dangerous products. The firm’s cases have involved failed aircraft components, machinery, roofing materials and motor vehicles. In addition, they have acted for pharmaceutical companies and handled cases involving allegedly defective medical devices and other allegedly dangerous products including tobacco.

Arbitration: Randy Kaardal QC and Michael Stephens have acted as arbitration counsel in several commercial matters and also as litigation counsel in cases arising out of arbitration proceedings, including the leading case on judicial review of arbitral decisions.

Administrative and public law: the firm has a diverse public law practice, which includes acting for and against provincial and federal administrative tribunals and ministries in judicial review proceedings, administrative appeals, marketing board proceedings, constitutional challenges and permit hearings. Randal Kaardal QC has broad experience in public law disputes, with an emphasis in human rights and employment disputes. Michael Stephens is an annual contributor to the Continuing Legal Education’s Annual Review of Law and Practice in the area of administrative law, and has experience before administrative tribunals and courts in judicial review proceedings. Claire Hunter has an active marketing board practice and has acted in a wide variety of legal challenges to administrative decisions. Randy Kaardal QC, Bill Smart QC and Brent Olthuis have recent experience practicing before professional regulatory tribunals, including representation of both the professional association and members.

Aboriginal law: counsel from Hunter Litigation Chambers have been in the forefront of the development of a body of aboriginal law in British Columbia, representing industry and government in responding to claims of aboriginal rights and title.

Forestry law: Mark Oulton from Hunter Litigation Chambers appears regularly before the Forest Appeals Commission, the British Columbia Supreme Court, and the British Columbia Court of Appeal on forestry-related matters.

Labor and employment law: the firm’s labor and employment practice is headed by Randal Kaardal QC, who has over 20 years of experience handling labor and employment matters. Mr Kaardal has been counsel on many of the leading decisions in British Columbia related to employment law, labor law and human rights law. The firm’s labor and employment practice is broad-based, dealing with the full spectrum of issues arising out of the employment relationship in both the union or non-union environment.

Criminal and regulatory law: the firm has more recently developed a broad-based criminal law and regulatory practice that includes prosecutions under the Criminal Code as well as various other Federal and Provincial statutes and regulations. The firm is also retained from time to time by the Crown to act on its behalf. Bill Smart QC has over 35 years of experience appearing in trial courts on criminal law and regulatory cases and has been a member of faculty of the Federation of Law Societies National Criminal Law Program for the last 30 years. Brent Olthuis also appears regularly in criminal cases in all levels of court in the province.