This session provides the “what’s involved” in an application to the bench from the Chair of Judicial Council of BC, Chief Judge Melissa Gillespie, and Justice David Harris, from the Judicial Advisory Committee for BC with respect to appointments to Supreme Court and Court of Appeal. The panelists include judges reflecting the diversity of the judiciary of our courts and who will share their experiences in the application process and following their appointment.

About Chief Judge Melissa Gillespie

Chief Judge Melissa Gillespie was born and grew up in Calgary, Alberta. She obtained a Bachelor of Commerce from Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario in 1985, an LLB from the University of Toronto in 1989, and was called to the BC bar in 1991. For more than 20 years Chief Judge Gillespie served as Crown counsel in the Fraser region of British Columbia, working primarily in Surrey and New Westminster. In 2005 she became Regional Crown Counsel, and in 2009 she was appointed King’s Counsel.

Chief Judge Gillespie was appointed to the Provincial Court in 2012, sat in Surrey and the Fraser Valley, and was appointed an Associate Chief Judge of the Provincial Court in 2016, Acting Chief Judge on May 7, 2018, and Chief Judge on October 19, 2018. Chief Judge Gillespie will serve in this position until December 31, 2026.

For many years she represented the Court on the board of directors of the BC Justice Education Society (JES). From 2015 through 2021 she worked with JES to provide ongoing education and training to police, prosecutors, and magistrates to strengthen the justice system of Guyana. In 2021 she joined the board of Access Pro Bono, a charitable organization using volunteers to provide access to justice around BC.

Chief Judge Gillespie also served on the BC Provincial Court Judges’ Association executive and participated in a number of Court committees including the Criminal Law Committee. She is a member of and Chair of the Canadian Council of Chief Judges and a member of the National Judicial Institute's Board of Governors.

In addition, she has been involved in providing education for members of the judicial and legal communities including programs hosted by the Continuing Legal Education Society of BC, Trial Lawyers Association, the Advocates Society, Canadian Bar Association, National Judicial Institute, New Judges training, and the Canadian Institute for the Administration of Justice. 

About Justice David C. Harris

Mr. Justice Harris attended the University of Oxford, where he received a Bachelor of Arts in 1977 from Exeter College. He received a Master of Philosophy in 1979 and a doctorate in 1982 from Nufield College. He received a Bachelor of Laws from the University of British Columbia in 1985 and was admitted to the Bar of British Columbia in 1987. He was appointed King's Counsel in 2004.

Mr. Justice Harris was appointed a judge of the Supreme Court of British Columbia in 2010 and to the Court of Appeal in 2012. Prior to his appointment, he was a lawyer with Hunter Litigation Chambers in Vancouver. He had been a lawyer with Berardino & Harris from 2000 to 2006 and with Russell & Dumoulin from 1986 to 2000. He was a law clerk with the Court of Appeal in 1985. His main area of practice was civil litigation.

Mr. Justice Harris was a part-time professor at the University of British Columbia Law School as well as a frequent lecturer for numerous continuing legal education programs.

About Associate Judge Susan Sangha

Associate Chief Judge Sangha was born and raised in Vancouver. She holds an undergraduate degree from the University of British Columbia and a law degree from the University of Victoria. She graduated law school in 1996 before being called to the BC bar in 1997. She was a civil litigator and partner at a Vancouver law firm, where she had worked before beginning law school. Her practice area was insurance defence work, focused on personal injury, occupier’s liability, product liability, employment and human rights matters. She was actively involved in the firm’s management, including being a member of their executive management team. Since being appointed on March 7, 2022, Judge Sangha has been a member of the Court’s Civil Law Committee.


 

About Justice Tina L. Dion

Justice Tina L. Dion is a member of the Kehewin Cree Nation, Alberta. She received her undergraduate degree from the University of Alberta in 1994, Bachelor of Laws from the University of British Columbia in 1997 and Doctor of Juridical Science from the University of Arizona in 2008. She was the first Canadian Law Clerk to the Navajo Nation Supreme Court, Window Rock, Arizona (1998). She was admitted to the British Columbia Bar in 1999 and to the Alberta Bar in 2014.

Justice Dion was appointed to the Provincial Court of British Columbia in 2019 and then the Supreme Court of British Columbia in 2024. As a Provincial Court Judge, she regularly sat as one of two judges in First Nations Court New Westminster. Prior to her appointment to the bench, she had been in private practice in the areas of civil litigation, administrative, environmental, regulatory and Aboriginal law since 2013. She articled and worked with criminal firm Orris Burns prior to joining Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP where she practised civil ligation. She was in-house counsel and Director of Legal Services with the Tsawwassen First Nation Government. She served as an adjunct professor at UBC Law over a 12-year period and was appointed King's Counsel in 2016.

Justice Dion loves to travel and spend time with friends and family.

About Justice Lindsay R. LeBlanc

Justice Lindsay R. LeBlanc was born and raised in Quesnel (traditional territory of the Lhtako Dene). She obtained her Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Northern British Columbia and a LL.B. from the University of Victoria. She was called to the British Columbia bar in 2006 and was appointed to the Supreme Court in 2024.

Prior to Justice LeBlanc joining the bench, she practiced at Cox Taylor in Victoria, where she developed a hybrid solicitor and litigation practice, focusing in the areas of property development, municipal, administrative, corporate commercial and wills & estates. She was appointed King’s Counsel in 2023.

Justice LeBlanc has been a dedicated volunteer, having served on many boards and regulatory entities. She was elected a Bencher of the Law Society of BC for the Victoria County and served as 2^nd Vice-President.