Canadian Lawyer

28 A P R I L 2 0 1 8 w w w . C A N A D I A N L a w y e r m a g . c o m fter more than 20 years as a com- mercial litigator, David Wother- spoon found himself looking around, seeking other ways to apply his litigation talents. "As a commercial litiga- tor, you spend a lot of time in your office and never enough time in court, but you're helping champion commercial interests, which is important and valu- able, but there are so many other needs in the world and people who can't afford those [commercial] kinds of rates. Most lawyers couldn't afford to hire them- selves," says Wotherspoon, who, as of March 5, will head up the commercial lit- igation practice at Dentons in Vancouver. The first pro bono project he took on was with DJ Larkin when she worked at West Coast Prison Justice Society and launched a lawsuit against then-federal minister of Justice Vic Toews and the ministry over cancellation of part-time prison chaplain contracts across the country. Soon after Larkin moved to Pivot Legal Society to became its housing advo- cate, the City of Abbotsford sued a group of homeless people. "Katrina [Pacey, then Pivot executive director,] knew I was looking for opportunities to do social justice pro bono work and they asked me if I would assist with an injunction being brought to close a homeless camp in Abbottsford," recalls Wotherspoon. "I said, 'Sure, I've done lots of injunctions.'" Wotherspoon, who was at Fasken Mar- tineau DuMoulin LLP at the time, esti- mated it would take about half a day of his time. It morphed into a six-week trial with many applications and a trip to the Court of Appeal. "That injunction application was in December 2013. We did the Abbotsford trial in the summer of 2015 and then the cost application was after that," he says. In that case, the B.C. Supreme Court handed down a judgment in favour of Abbotsford's homeless, striking down bylaws prohibiting the homeless from set- ting up temporary shelters and sleeping on city property. In an 81-page judgment, Chief Justice Christopher Hinkson ruled that prohibit- ing the homeless from sleeping in city parks was in violation of s. 7 of the Cana- dian Charter of Rights and Freedoms that ensures the right of security for a person. "The Abbotsford case was the most rewarding — I've never worked harder but have never been more satisfied," he says. After the Abbotsford case, more cit- ies and municipalities have changed their bylaws and some have been struck down in breach of s. 7. "I think there was a positive effect as a result of the Abbotsford case — more from the analysis provided by the chief justice about what s. 7 actually provides people who are homeless. I think that has resulted in some positive change and in part why the City of Maple Ridge is taking a different approach to that homeless encampment." When issues in Maple Ridge arose last spring, Wotherspoon contacted Pacey and Larkin to see if they wanted assistance again. Last fall, he and the legal team at Pivot Legal worked to help residents of the C R O S S E X A M I N E D Justice for B.C.'s homeless Commercial litigator David Wotherspoon advocates for those who need a voice By Jennifer Brown A

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