Course Chairs
Maria Morellato, QC — Mandell Pinder LLP, Vancouver
Leah George-Wilson — Gowling LaFleur Henderson LLP, Vancouver
About the Course Chairs
Maria Morellato, QC, partner with Mandell Pinder LLP in Vancouver, specializes in aboriginal and treaty rights law. A civil litigator and negotiator, she has acted as legal counsel before all levels of the court system, including the Supreme Court of Canada. She has also appeared before various administrative tribunals and regulatory commissions relating to marketing boards and international trade issues.
Maria has negotiated reconciliation agreements with both the federal and provincial governments, and has advised on the implementation and management of First Nations trusts. She has been counsel on many leading aboriginal title and rights cases and related proceedings, including land, resource, and fishing cases, and has provided advice relating to consultation and accommodation requirements regarding resource use and land development projects. Maria has also advised on specific claims matters, and has provided legal advice on a wide variety of First Nations governance and administrative matters.
Maria has written numerous articles for various academic and professional publications on First Nations and administrative law issues, and has chaired and delivered papers at many conferences on these topics. She is the editor-in-chief of Aboriginal Law Since Delgamuukw published by Canada Law Book.
Leah George-Wilson (Sisi-ya-ama) is a member of the Tsleil-Waututh Nation (TWN) in North Vancouver. She was the first woman to hold the office of Elected Chief for the TWN, a position she held from 2001 – 2003 and 2005 – 2009. Leah worked for the TWN for 18 years and held various positions for the Nation including member of the TWN’s negotiating team in the BC Treaty Process and Director of the Treaty, Land and Resources Department.
Leah holds a BA in Anthropology from Simon Fraser University and an LLB from the University of BC Faculty of Law. She was called to the BC bar on January 31, 2015, and in August 2015 Leah joined Gowling LaFleur Henderson LLP, Vancouver as an Associate in the Aboriginal Law Group.
Since 2004, Leah has been elected as co-chair of the First Nations Summit. She also sits on a number of boards, including the First Nations Lands Advisory Board and the First Nations Health Council.
Featured Speaker
Geoffrey Plant, QC — Gall Legge Grant & Munroe LLP, Vancouver
About the Featured Speaker
Geoffrey Plant, QC is a partner at Gall Legge Grant & Munroe LLP in Vancouver. He provides public law and policy advice and representation, and also works as a mediator and arbitrator in public and private law disputes.
Geoff was first elected to the British Columbia Legislature in 1996; from 1996 to 2001 he was Opposition Justice Critic, and served on a number of legislative and caucus committees. As Attorney General and Minister Responsible for Treaty Negotiations from 2001 to 2005, Geoff’s responsibilities included the negotiation of the New Relationship, the first-ever political accord between the Government of British Columbia and the province’s three Aboriginal political organizations. Prior to his election to the Legislature, Geoff practiced as a litigation lawyer with particular emphasis on Aboriginal and public law. He was counsel in a number of leading Aboriginal rights and title cases, including the landmark case of Delgamuukw v. British Columbia. He has lectured and written extensively on Aboriginal law, public law, and law reform.
Since re-entering law practice in 2005, Geoff has been appointed senior advisor to the Government of British Columbia in land and resource negotiations with the Council of Haida Nation and the First Nations Leadership Council, undertaken more than two dozen successful mediations in a dispute between investors and a major Canadian mutual fund company, and provided strategic advice to a number of BC businesses on establishing effective relations with First Nations. In 2012 Geoff was named one of Canada’s most influential lawyers by Canadian Lawyer magazine.
Faculty
Kennedy A. Bear Robe — Miller Thomson LLP, Vancouver
Becky Black — Ministry of Justice, Victoria
Professor John Borrows — Faculty of Law, University of Victoria, Victoria
Isabel Jackson — Department of Justice, Vancouver
Grand Chief Edward (Akile Ch'oh) John — First Nations Summit Society, West Vancouver
Pierre Lebel — Chairman, Imperial Metals Corporation, Vancouver
Clarine Ostrove — Mandell Pinder LLP, Vancouver
Millie Nickason, LLB, MPA — Faculty of Law, University of BC, Vancouver
Terri-Lee Oleniuk — Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP, Calgary
Scott A. Smith — Gowling Lafleur Henderson LLP, Vancouver
Glen R. Thompson — Ministry of Justice, Victoria
Erin Tully — Department of Justice, Vancouver
Terri-Lynn Williams-Davidson — White Raven Law Corporation, Surrey