Erin is an experienced litigator with a diverse practice spanning commercial, real estate, insolvency, family and estate disputes. She is a member of Harper Grey’s Commercial Litigation, Insolvency and Restructuring and Estate Litigation Groups.
Erin’s rich and varied litigation resume includes achieving successful results for clients at all levels of court in British Columbia and at the B.C. Securities Commission. She frequently appears in Supreme Court chambers. For a list of Erin’s select representative work, please refer to the Experience tab.
In her Commercial Litigation practice, Erin acts for individuals and businesses in a wide range of claims which include shareholder disputes, breach of contract, defamation, misrepresentation, conspiracy, fraud and real estate claims.
Erin’s Insolvency and Restructuring practice includes acting for secured and unsecured creditors, trustees and debtors in insolvency and debt enforcement proceedings, as well as the enforcement of foreign judgments in BC. Erin has particular expertise in foreclosures, having represented one of the big five banks in hundreds of foreclosure proceedings.
In Erin’s Estate Litigation practice she acts for executors, trustees, beneficiaries and disinherited family members in estate and trust issues regarding the validity of wills, capacity issues, trust claims, appointment of committees, passing of accounts and wills variation claims.
Commercial and Other Litigation
- Represented a corporation and its director in their successful defence against fraud allegations totaling approximately $65 million at a 10 day B.C. Securities Commission hearing (Re Pegasus Pharmaceuticals, 2021 BCSECCOM 374).
- Represented a minority interest property owner in obtaining an order to sell a property pursuant to the Partition of Property Act (Ruskowsky v. Hadden, 2021 BCSC 1141).
- Represented defendants in obtaining an order that a corporate plaintiff and personal plaintiff post security for costs of over $100,000 before they could proceed with their lawsuit (Noland v. Organo Gold Enterprises Inc., 2021 BCSC 858). The plaintiffs failed to post the security and successfully obtained an order dismissing the entire lawsuit against the defendants.
- Represented an investment and financial services firm in successfully upholding the registration of a foreign judgment at the Supreme Court and Court of Appeal pursuant to the Enforcement of Canadian Judgments and Decrees Act at the Supreme Court and Court of Appeal (Capital One, National Association v. Solehdin, 2020 BCCA 182 upholding Capital One, National Association v. Solehdin, 2019 BCSC 1593).
- Represented a fiberglass company at a 21 day trial in its successful defence against a breach of royalty agreement claim. The trial also included fraudulent and negligent misrepresentation claims (Billing v. Precisioneering DKG Corp., 2017 BCSC 1777).
- Represented property owners in obtaining orders to cancel certificates of pending litigation wrongfully registered by the plaintiff or not pursued by the plaintiff in a timely manner (for example, see Wai v. Chung, 2020 BCSC 34).
- Represented mortgagees and mortgagors in hundreds of foreclosures proceedings from the issuance of the demand letter to the court approved sale of property.
- Represented individuals who have been defamed online, including through social media, online reviews and blogs. Successfully obtained Norwich orders against Facebook, Inc., Rogers Communications Inc. and Bell Canada Enterprises to produce information to uncover the identities of the authors of the defamatory publications.
- Represented judgment creditors to recover payment on judgments including by compelling the sale of debtors’ properties pursuant to the Court Order Enforcement Act.
Estate and Family Litigation
- Represented a wife against her former husband and father-in-law at a 15 day family law trial against claims by the husband and father-in-law that a property and company shares were held in trust by the husband for the father-in-law. The husband also sought to set aside the separation agreement which transferred the property and shares to the wife. The court dismissed the trust claims and upheld the separation agreement transferring the property and shares to the wife (Ma v. Liu, 2023 BCSC 283). Successfully obtained a special costs order in favour of the wife against the husband and father-in-law (Ma v. Liu, 2023 BCSC 691).
- Represented a spouse in obtaining an order at the Court of Appeal for the appellants to pay over $240,000 in security for costs before they could proceed with their appeal (Ma v. Liu, 2023 BCCA 309).
- Represented the appellant in the appeal of a high-profile estate trial (Mother 1 v. Solus Trust Company Limited, 2021 BCCA 461). At issue was whether the appellant was in a “marriage like relationship” with a wealthy businessperson who had five children with five different mothers and subsequently died without a will.
- Represented executors of an estate in successfully proving the validity of a will and dismissing allegations that the will-maker was unduly influenced and did not have capacity to make the will (Re Charbonneau Estate, 2021 BCSC 2571).
- Represented a spouse at a 12 day high net worth family law trial with respect to the valuation and division of multiple assets in Canada, the United States and Mexico (Rochon v. Rochon, 2018 BCSC 1899 and supplementary reasons Rochon v. Rochon, 2018 BCSC 2215).
- Represented trustees, executors and beneficiaries in contested passing of accounts matters.
- Represented professional trust companies and individuals in their appointment as committees under the Patients Property Act.
Education
- University of Saskatchewan, J.D., 2012
- University of Calgary, B.A., 2008
Bar Admission
- British Columbia, 2013
Leadership
- Life In Law, Guest Blogger
Membership
- Canadian Bar Association, BC Branch Subsections, Member:
- Civil Litigation
- Insolvency Law
- Wills & Trusts
- Canadian Bar Association BC Insolvency Law Subsection, Treasurer
- Insolvency Discussion Group, Member
- The Law Society of British Columbia, Member
- Vancouver Bar Association, Member
