Lawyers in the Community

From musical rides to songs for charities
Kenn Kardish, at age 16, left a small rural Saskatchewan farm to attend high school in Saskatoon. After graduation, he pursued his dream of joining the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Kenn was sworn in as a member of the RCMP in July 1960, and attended the training academy in Regina.

After graduation, and serving in both Vancouver and Maple Ridge, Kenn was transferred to Regina and then to Ottawa, where he served on the world famous RCMP Musical Ride for two years. One of his many experiences during that time was escorting the Right Honourable John G. Diefenbaker to London, England, where the Prime Minister of Canada was declared a Freeman in the City of London.

Kenn’s primary responsibilities after leaving the Musical Ride were those of a plainclothes Investigator in Surrey and in Courtenay, BC.

Kenn then attended the National Training Center of Polygraph Science in New York and opened the first Polygraph Section for the RCMP in Victoria in 1977. He eventually became BC’s Senior Polygraphist for the Force.

Kenn retired in 1982 with a 23-year pension from the RCMP. The day following his retirement from the RCMP, Kenn commenced law school at the University of Victoria and was called to the BC Bar in 1986. Kenn practises in criminal law and civil litigation at Kardish & Company in Victoria. His police background gives him special insight and he often represents police officers from municipal police departments and the RCMP.

In 1997, Kenn continued his pursuit of another love, that of music, and joined the Greater Victoria Police Chorus. That organization consists of police officers (retired and serving) from the five Victoria area municipal departments as well as the RCMP. The Chorus has traveled to Europe and other Canadian provinces, raising money for charities. The Chorus, which has existed for 15 years, has raised more than $400,000 for charities.

Kenn, as an RCMP officer, as a lawyer, and in his involvement in the Victoria City Police Chorus, has been and continues to be involved in helping others and giving of himself. Dale Melin, a fellow chorus member agrees, “Kenn’s always there, always willing to help in any way he can.”

Thanks to Fran March, of Victoria, for authoring Kenn’s “Lawyer in the Community” profile.

We’re looking for more outstanding lawyers
If you know of a lawyer who has made a vital contribution to life in his or her community beyond the law, please call BarTalk Editor Caroline Nevin at 604.687.3404 or, if you’re outside the Lower Mainland, call our toll free line at 1.888.687.3404.

This article was published in the August 1999 issue of BarTalk. © 1999 The Canadian Bar Association. All rights reserved.