Canadian Lawyer

Poverty lawyer beats premier in B.C.'s second wealthiest riding T he irony of a socialist poverty lawyer winning B.C.'s second wealthiest riding isn't lost on New Democrat David Eby, who snatched up a political victory on the home turf of Premier Christy Clark in Vancouver-Point Grey in May's Liberal election sweep. "I was told that people would not accept a poverty lawyer as their representative," says Eby, 36, who is best known for his work with the B.C. Civil Liberties Association and Pivot Legal Society. He has actively — albeit unsuccessfully — run for both a provincial and a city seat in past elections. In a 2011 byelection, Clark squeaked by Eby in the riding with a 564-vote lead. So when the Liberal candidates committee was looking for someone for a rematch with Clark, Eby was ready, this time landing a 2013 provincial election win with a 785-vote advantage. "It was satisfying for the whole team," says Eby of the win. "Many of them were the same people who had worked on the past byelection." Eby says he ran a grassroots campaign reaching out to as David Eby snatched victory many local residents as possible. It was a sharp contrast to on B.C. Premier Christy Clark, who does not live in the riding she represented and Clark's home turf. did little face-to-face campaigning until the last week. The lack of Clark's presence "rubbed people the wrong way," says Eby, who feels the poll results show residents want an accessible member in their riding. Eby also feels his win over the premier, who now has to seek a seat through a byelection, was the result of informed and diverse voters. "My experience is that people in this riding [located at the doorstep of the University of British Columbia] are well-educated and they are interested in issues that go beyond their community," Eby tells Canadian Lawyer. Area residents range from new arrivals purchasing multimillion-dollar homes, to longtime residents who have watched property prices soar over seven digits, to renters in secondary suites in houses and students. "I ran on an environmentally-based platform," says Eby, following NDP Leader Adrian Dix. Eby stressed climate change issues, opposition to oil tanker traffic, and pipelines that would risk B.C.'s coastal areas and beaches. "This is a very environmentally minded riding and was really the No. 1 issue," he says. He also opposed the Enbridge Northern Gateway project, which polls have shown is an environmental concern for 80 per cent of B.C. residents. The exception was a tanker captain "who I got at the door," says Eby, adding the discussion centred on tanker safety and, in a small way, the porch-talk was a harbinger of what was to transpire on election night where the environment battled against Clark's job platform. "He was concerned about his job." Eby first considered politics when working for Pivot and saw a city councillor's seat as a means of effecting reform for Downtown Eastside residents. However, he followed his late father, a personal injury lawyer, into law. Eby was raised in Kitchener, Ont., and obtainied his law degree from Dalhousie University. He articled in Vancouver and was called to the bar in 2005, working for Pivot until 2008 when he moved to become executive director of the B.C. Civil Liberties Association until 2012. He has worked as a UBC adjunct professor of law, has served as the president of Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network, as well as a research associate with the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. Eby is not expecting to take a seat in the B.C. Legislature until late this summer at the earliest as he awaits Clark'sJuly 10 byelection which will see the Liberals arrive in government with 50 MLAs — five more than before the election — and the NDP with 33. While his largest commitment is to the riding, Eby says he is willing to serve the party in any capacity in a legislature but favours a role as justice or health critic. "And, the environment is close to my heart," he says. — JS Byron dauncey Local B.C. lawyers and prosecutors, the RCMP, Vancouver Police Department, and Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit of B.C. participated in exchange programs sharing knowledge. Members of the criminal justice teams visited B.C. and prosecutors and police travelled to Guatemala. Through learning Canadian wiretapping techniques, prosecutors got a break in the Stowlinsky murder. After carrying out a wiretap on the Zetas, police seized gang members' phones and found video relating to the dismemberment of the prosecutor's body. "At the time this happened," says Craig, "we were setting up a forensic video analysis unit." While the phone pictures were dark, technicians were able to work with video and enhance the images to see a naked male torso with tattoos dismembering Stowlinsky. "They matched the tattoo photos to the markings of the killer in a police lineup. The physical evidence is especially important," says Craig, "because people are often terrified to testify in court." In May, Attorney General Claudia Paz y Paz was in B.C. to present the Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit of B.C. with an award of appreciation for its help. Other Guatemalan justice members have also acknowledged the role B.C.'s legal community has played in apprehending gangs. "As a direct result of the [telephone interception] course, Guatemala's new capabilities in electronic eavesdropping have directly supported police in successful efforts to break up extortion gangs, frustrate kidnapping attempts, and have even led to the freeing of kidnap victims. The wiretap work has been successful in our country, and Canada has played a leading role," said Judge Marco Antonio Villeda, a judicial participant in the April 2009 Canadian wiretap course sponsored by JES. Craig says the Guatemalan work by JES is funded by the Canadian International Development Agency and Foreign Affairs and international trade departments. JES is looking for more lawyers, prosecutors, and judges who are willing to play a role in reforming the Guatemalan system. "We are especially interested in those who have Spanish speaking skills," says Craig. — Jean Sorensen jean_sorensen@telus.net www.CANADIAN L a w ye r m a g . c o m J u ly 2013 13

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