BarTalk April 2001
Volume 13, Number 2

On February 23, 2001 Phil Rankin left a courtroom where he had just represented his client, a man accused of murder. Mr. Rankin was confronted by the deceased person’s family, and in the melee which followed, sustained a gash to his head and other injuries. Appalled by this attack on one of our members, the CBABC issued a strong response both to the media and to the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.

Dear Justice Brenner:

I am writing to you to express concern about the recent incident involving one of our members, Phillip Rankin. As you no doubt know, he was attacked by a group of people after successfully gaining the release of his client who was charged with murder. The attack was sufficiently violent that Mr. Rankin fell onto a planter and sustained a number of injuries to his head and face. This is not the first instance of a physical attack on a lawyer in a courthouse in the province. There have been a number of instances some of which have resulted in quite serious injuries and indeed, in one case, death.

While the Canadian Bar Association supports unencumbered access by all to the courts in this province and would not favour barriers to that access, it is of considerable concern that lawyers be free to represent their client to the best of their ability without fear of injury and violence. In this particular case the incident occurred in the public area of the courthouse; however, I hasten to point out that there had been a confrontation between Mr. Rankin and the apparent perpetrators of this attack in the courtroom. Presumably, that did not or ought not to have gone unnoticed by the Sheriffs in that courtroom. Perhaps had the Sheriffs accompanied Mr. Rankin from the courthouse this incident might have been avoided. There may be other precautions that could also have been taken.

I write to you in your capacity as Chief Justice with the hope that you will refer this concern to the appropriate person so that steps may be taken to avoid the reoccurrence of this type of violent attack.

Should you wish to discuss this matter further with me, I would be most pleased to do so.

Yours truly,

Margaret Ostrowski, QC, President

Dear Editor:

I am writing to you for several purposes. First to express on behalf of the Canadian Bar Association BC Branch sympathy to our member Phil Rankin for recently having had to endure a very violent attack that left him with injuries to his face and head. It is our sincere hope that he makes a speedy and complete recovery.

Secondly, I write to condemn the behaviour of his attackers. Mr. Rankin was engaged in his lawful duties in defending a client who was charged with murder. One of the fundamental rights of a person coming before a Canadian court is the right to make full answer and defense. An accused also has the right to retain a lawyer to represent him or her during the proceeding. Imagine the harm that could be done to those rights if lawyers declined to represent accused persons for fear of their own personal safety. Not only does the Canadian Bar Association BC Branch condemn this conduct; society as a whole cannot afford to ignore or silently condone the conduct of Mr. Rankin’s attackers.

Thirdly, I write to commend the Editorial Board of the Vancouver Sun for publishing your editorial on February 27, 2001 entitled “Justice Must Not Be Denied”. Your condemnation of this attack and attacks similar to it, not only as they relate to lawyers doing their jobs but also to other members of the justice system, are to be praised. On behalf of the Canadian Bar Association BC Branch, I thank you for your defense of lawyers carrying out their lawful duties.

Yours truly,

Margaret Ostrowski, QC, President

This letter was published in the April 2001 issue of BarTalk.