Founded in 1907, Harper Grey LLP is a Vancouver, BC based full-service law firm with a large and experienced commercial litigation group. Our firm has a long tradition of excellence and is one of the most well-established law firms in Western Canada.
Harper Grey’s litigators offer sharp insight and extensive expertise to ensure that matters are resolved efficiently and effectively either by agreement or through the courts. Our approach to dispute resolution begins with the premise that a matter will go to trial. The best litigation strategies anticipate every angle, twist and turn that may crop up if a dispute is argued before a judge and possibly a jury. Our lawyers strategize from the strongest possible position, regardless of whether the issues are resolved before or after court.
Harper Grey’s litigators have an exceptional reputation. They are committed to delivering the highest quality legal work and counsel and many of them are repeatedly recognized among the top practitioners in their areas of expertise by Benchmark Litigation, Best Lawyers in Canada, Chambers Canada and Lexpert.
Administrative Law: Public scrutiny over ethical issues for professionals has increased dramatically over the past several years. Harper Grey provides advice and assistance to professionals in their dealings with governance issues, ethical obligations and responsibilities, and represents them before a wider range of regulatory bodies.
Bankruptcy and Restructuring: Acting for individual and corporate debtors in financial difficulty, Harper Grey has the skill, insight and experience to resolve debt problems. The group also provides advice and representation to secured and unsecured creditors, receivers, liquidators, and trustees in bankruptcy.
Complex, Mass Tort and Class Actions: Complex claims that threaten a company’s survival present unique challenges, both in the courtroom and in the boardroom. Successful resolution of these claims therefore requires counsel who are not only effective as a courtroom advocate, but also have the necessary experience to provide sound strategic advice. Our lawyers have that experience and have handled some of Canada’s most significant, complex and challenging cases.
Commercial Litigation: This group has significant experience working with large corporations, medium-sized firms and owner-operated companies. Client needs served include: contractual disputes, shareholder disputes, including oppression remedies and derivative actions, securities litigation, real estate litigation, construction litigation, including builders’ liens actions, estate litigation, employment litigation, products liability litigation, enforcement of security, including foreclosures and debenture holders’ actions, and municipal disputes.
Construction Law: Harper Grey takes a practical approach to disputes arising from the construction industry, enabling effective solutions in matters such as allegations of professional negligence, professional disciplinary matters, contractual disputes, leaking condominium issues, commercial real estate disputes and risk management advice.
Environmental Law: Clients seek Harper Grey’s advice on a wide range of environmental issues from contaminated sites to sick building syndrome to cross-border disputes. Harper Grey has senior, experienced counsel who provide a practical approach to the most complex environmental matters, including cost recovery actions, directors’ and officers’ liability, property development and transactions, and environmental insurance coverage issues.
Health Law: Harper Grey is the leader in civil litigation defence for medical practitioners in British Columbia and has been involved in all leading litigation regarding the standard of medical care, medical products, litigation consent issues and limitation issues.
Insurance Law: Harper Grey works with insurance companies and their insureds in all areas of insurance law. Members of the group have developed specialized expertise in various areas, such as: professional errors and omissions, commercial and personal general liability, property damage, directors’ and officers’ liability, life and disability insurance, defamation, subrogation, sexual abuse claims, and transportation related issues.
Professional Liability Defence: Harper Grey has, for many years, been the recognized leader in the defence of professionals facing liability issues. They act for doctors, lawyers, accountants, architects and engineers. They also provide administrative law advice for professionals facing disciplinary action.
Real Estate Law: This cross-disciplinary team of experienced legal advisors, are deeply invested in the success of their clients. Balancing high-level technical expertise with business savvy real-world experience they deliver results relating to commercial real estate issues including acquisitions/dispositions, commercial leasing, property development and real estate dispute resolution.
Securities Regulation & Litigation: We represent securities clients whose reputation, ability to operate, and share value are seriously threatened. Broker dealers, investment advisors, mutual fund salespeople, brokerage firms, public companies, directors and officers rely on our lawyers to resolve their securities law issues fairly and efficiently. Our lawyers handle securities matters involving both civil and criminal law. We take an objective, pragmatic view of your best options, and rely on strong, respectful relationships with authorities to negotiate a solution.
Workplace Law: We help organizations and individuals resolve employment law issues in a way that minimizes risk to business operations and reputation. The lawyers in this group all practice business litigation and are very experienced in matters relating to workplace law, such as corporate finance, white collar crime, human rights insurance and directors and officers liability.
Formerly a prominent regional insurance defense firm, Vancouver-founded Whitelaw Twining has seen impressive growth in its near 45-year history. From establishing a strong corporate-commercial litigation practice, to expanding across Canada, to becoming part of DWF Group and its global network, our milestones reflect our continuing commitment to scale and innovate to better cater to our clients’ diverse needs and growing lines of business.
With offices in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto and Montreal, and with capabilities to serve further provinces and territories, our team of over 130 professionals pushes beyond standard litigation practices to deliver progressive and creative solutions in complex, high-stakes and multi-jurisdictional disputes. Our culture is one of collaboration, and we combine local knowledge with global resources to achieve success for our clients.
We work closely with each client to determine their particular needs and employ a results-driven approach to ensure strategic alignment with our clients’ long-term goals. Our team skillfully and tactfully advocates for our clients in the courtroom, before various regulatory bodies and tribunals and in arbitrations and mediations.
With an eye on data and analytics, we maintain metrics that assist us with and inform our clients of our ongoing evaluation and improvement of cost-efficiency, cycle times and general file-handling procedures.
We value being a good corporate citizen. Our lawyers actively participate in their local business and social communities. We support and enthusiastically volunteer with access to justice organizations and community outreach programs and devote time to lecturing at universities and hosting informational seminars on current industry topics.
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Farris is a high performance law firm, with the proven capacity and experience to execute and close complex and diverse transactions. The firm’s clients include some of the most significant public institutions, listed companies and private corporations in British Columbia. Farris balances a strong regional and national presence with an expanding international practice that includes US, European, and Asia-Pacific based clients.
Many of our lawyers are recognized as leaders in their field. Most of our Partners are named as industry leading experts and 85% of the Partners are independently ranked among the best.
The firm practices nationally from its office in Vancouver, and has offices in Kelowna and Victoria. Farris has over 100 professionals who collectively offer a full range of legal services and tax planning and advice.
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Kornfeld LLP | Kornfeld, Shapray & Partners, is a Vancouver - based boutique commercial and litigation firm that specializes in corporate and commercial work – transactional, litigation, arbitration, alternate dispute resolution and strategic advice.
The firm is known for dynamism, ingenuity and common sense, which, when matched by the wealth of the collective experience of our lawyers, results in timely, pragmatic solutions.
The firm’s clients range from entrepreneurs to major Canadian and US-based corporations. Our work frequently involves large, complex or high-profile disputes, and we routinely manage intricate, multi-party litigation and document-intensive cases.
Our lawyers have represented clients before all levels of court in British Columbia and Canada, as well as in Alberta, the Yukon, and Ontario.
Our disputes practice considers all available options in our goal to achieve a favourable resolution. As such, we are highly skilled in the art of negotiation and strategic positioning. Our expertise also extends to mediations and arbitrations.
The firm has come into existence from the merger of Shapray Cramer Fitterman Lamer LLP, formed in 1993 when Howard Shapray, KC, for many years the head of the litigation department of one of Vancouver’s leading firms, established an innovative and focused litigation boutique. Kornfeld LLP was formed in the same year by Neil Kornfeld, KC, with a focus on real estate development, acting for commercial and residential developers on the acquisition and redevelopment of noteworthy and unique sites in British Columbia. The two firms worked closely together, each developing sterling reputations for doing high quality, high stakes commercial work. For over three decades, lawyers at the two firms have provided expert advice and effective advocacy to B.C. entrepreneurs, developers, governments, financial institutions, and professional associations, as well as national and international entities.
Over time it became clear that the synergies and cultures of each firm accorded such that the strength in unity from a merger made perfect sense. The merger has increased the litigation department’s bench strength and capacity to handle large complex matters.
Shapray Cramer Fitterman Lamer LLP and Kornfeld LLP formally merged to become Kornfeld LLP | Kornfeld, Shapray & Partners effective Jan 1, 2022.
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