The most widely read magazine for Canadian lawyers
Issue link: https://digital.canadianlawyermag.com/i/50094
ASSOCIATES McWhinnie has a passion for pugilism Vancouver associate has been known to show up in court sporting a black eye, only to be asked by the judge if he's actually the accused. B Y B ILL R OG E RS of boxing gloves. "My helmet sometimes sits on my desk as well," he notes. "I think it reassures my clients that I'm not afraid of getting into a fight in court." It's not every day you come across a H litigator who's also a boxer. The com- bination can cause quite a stir when McWhinnie, a second-year associate with Farris Vaughan Wills & Murphy LLP in Vancouver, strides into the court- room bearing the scars of battle. "I have anging from the back of David McWhinnie's chair you'll find something unusual. It's a pair frequently gone in with black eyes and fat lips," the 32-year-old explains. "One time I got up to speak, clean-shaven in my suit, and I had a big black eye. The judge asked me compassionately: 'Are you the accused, sir?'" McWhinnie's passion for pugilism dates back to childhood. Coincidentally, his interest in law took root at the same time. "I blame my parents," he says. "I was introduced to Rumpole and Rocky at the same time. So I became a lawyer who loves boxing." Since then he has participated in the 16 JANU AR Y 2008 www. C ANADIAN Law ye rmag.com so-called "sweet science" with enthusiasm. He finds it helpful in his law practice. "I go into the ring confident, calm, and re- served," he says, "even though inside I may be screaming. If I get jitters before a fight I never show it. So when I go into court, I'm also confident, calm, and reserved." In the practice of law, it's essential to project confidence, he feels. "The kind of confidence I get from boxing is not the kind that comes from knowing you can fight and you can beat guys up. It's the confidence that comes from knowing you've pushed yourself and you haven't