We at LESA are delighted to welcome the following new members-at-large to our Board of Directors.
Kathryn Chisholm QC
A member of the Executive Team at Capital Power, Kate is Senior Vice President, Legal, Regulatory & Government Affairs. Kate has a Master of Business Administration, Queen’s University, Bachelor of Laws, University of Alberta and a Bachelor of Arts, Mount Allison University. She is a non-Bencher member of the Law Society of Alberta’s Continuing Competence Committee. Actively involved in her community, Kate sits on the boards for the Bissell Centre, Edmonton, the United Way Capital Region, chairs the Human Resources and Governance Committee and is the Founder and Chair of the MORE Mentoring Program for Young Female Professionals.
Walter Pavlic QC
Walter is with MacPherson, Leslie & Tyerman LLP, in Edmonton. He has advised and represented management of small and large businesses on labour relations and employment matters for 25 years. He routinely appears before administrative boards and arbitration panels, and has appeared before all Alberta courts and the Federal Court of Canada. He is a Past-President of the Canadian Bar Association – Alberta Branch, a member of the Canadian Bar Association National Council, a member of the Federal Judicial Advisory Committee, and serves as Director for Pro Bono Law Alberta.
Sabri Shawa QC
Sabri is with Jensen Shawa Solomon Duguid Hawkes LLP in Calgary. His early education is in chemical engineering and in 1990, he graduated with a law degree from the University of Alberta. Sabri went on to earn a Master of Laws degree, with a major in Dispute Resolution, from the University of Technology in Sydney, Australia. In 1995, Sabri and three others founded what is today Jensen Shawa Solomon Duguid Hawkes LLP. The firm focuses on civil litigation and has grown from four lawyers to about two dozen. In addition to his practice, Sabri has an active interest in teaching. From 2003 to 2010, he was a sessional instructor at the Faculty of Law at the University of Calgary teaching Civil Procedure and has also been a guest lecturer in other courses. In 2009, Sabri was nominated for the Howard Tidswell Memorial Award for Teaching Excellence. Sabri is the chairperson of the Community Advisory Board for the Forensic Studies Program at Mount Royal University, and has authored portions of courses for that program. He has been involved with that program since its inception in 1997.
Jennifer Ruttan
Jennifer is with Ruttan Bates in Calgary. Her practice is dedicated primarily to criminal defence work both as a trial and appellate lawyer. Jennifer has extensive trial experience, including jury trials, as well as experience in appeals, judicial dispute resolution and mediation. In addition to Criminal Code matters, Jennifer’s criminal defence practice also includes defending provincial and federal prosecutions under the Income Tax Act, Occupational Health and Safety Act, Fair Trading Act, and Environmental legislation. She has appeared at all levels of courts, including the Supreme Court of Canada. She is an instructor in our Intensive Advocacy Course, and has instructed in the comparable course in the Northwest Territories. A Past Chair of the Canadian Bar Association – Alberta Branch Criminal Justice Section, she has been a volunteer at Calgary Legal Guidance, and Counsel to Student Legal Assistance in Calgary. She has a Bachelor of Arts in Criminology (with distinction) and a Bachelor of Laws.
A sincere thank you to all of our board members for giving so generously of their time and expertise. We appreciate their guidance and we’re so grateful to work with the very best of the profession in this capacity.
A round of applause to all of our board members:
Chair: Prof. Tamara Buckwold (Faculty of Law, U of A)
Vice – Chair: Daniel T. Gallagher QC (Bennett Jones LLP)
Secretary Treasurer: Aaron D. Martens (Dunphy Best Blocksom LLP)
Past Chair: Thomas Achtymichuk QC (McQuaig Desrochers)
Neena Ahluwalia QC (Youth Criminal Defence Office)
Kathryn Chisholm QC (Capital Power)
Prof. Lois Gander QC (Legal Resource Centre)
Ken H. Lewis QC (Tory Lewis Abells LLP)
Walter Pavlic QC (MacPherson Leslie & Tyerman LLP)
Sabri Shawa QC (Jensen Shawa Solomon Duguid Hawkes LLP)
Don Thompson QC (The Law Society of Alberta)
Prof. Catherine A. Brown, (Faculty of Law, U of C)
Michael Mestinsek (Stikeman Elliot LLP)
Jennifer Ruttan (Ruttan Bates)
Judicial Liaisons
Hon. Justice P. A. Rowbotham – Alberta Court of Appeal
Hon. Justice S. D. Hillier – Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench
Hon. Judge K. J. Jordan – The Provincial Court of Alberta
