Members

The 2023-2024 CBA Board of Directors represents the full diversity of Canada’s legal profession. They are responsible, together with CBA staff, for setting a course for the CBA’s future and remain focused on serving our members.

The Board is composed of one member from each province and territory, plus the CBA President and CEO. It is our pleasure to introduce the Board’s members to you.

Ken Armstrong

KEN ARMSTRONG K.C.

British Columbia

Ken currently practices insurance defence litigation, focusing on major loss motor vehicle accident claims. Ken has also practiced employment law and commercial litigation. He has appeared before all levels of courts in British Columbia. He has written articles and taught lawyers on topics including ethics and practice management, civil procedure, and jury trials.

Ken had served on a variety of CBA national committees, including most recently the Sections Subcommittee. He was President of the BC branch in 2019-2020, served over 20 years on Provincial Council, and several terms on the branch executive committee. He was President of the New Westminster Bar Association in 2004-2005. He was appointed Queen’s Counsel in December 2020.

Ken is a committed youth sports volunteer, with over twenty-five years of service as a coach, official and administrator. He has umpired at two different World Series within the Little League program.

Audrey Boctor

AUDREY BOCTOR

Quebec

Audrey Boctor is a partner at Montreal litigation boutique IMK LLP. She practices in all areas of civil and commercial litigation, with a focus on constitutional and administrative law and disputes involving public and private international law. She regularly appears before all levels of court and administrative tribunals.

Audrey is currently serving as the Chair of the CBA National Equality Subcommittee. She is a former president of CBA-Quebec, a former chair of CBA-National and CBA-Quebec’s administrative law sections and a former president of CBA-Quebec’s equality committee. In 2021, Audrey received the CBA SOGIC Ally Award for her work as lead counsel in public interest litigation advancing equality for LGBTQ2+ people in Canada.

Jordan Brown

JORDAN BROWN

Prince Edward Island

Born and raised in Charlottetown, Jordan completed his education at the University of Prince Edward Island (BBA, 2002) and the University of New Brunswick Law School (LL.B. 2005). He was called to the Bar in 2006.

Jordan maintains a general legal practice focusing on corporate and commercial law, real property transactions, and general litigation and has appeared in all levels of Court within Prince Edward Island.

Jordan served as Minister of Justice, Public Safety and Attorney General in the Government of Prince Edward Island between October 2017 and May 2019. He previously served as Minister of Education, Early Learning and Culture. 

He has been a member of the Canadian Bar Association for many years and served as President of the Young Lawyers’ Forum in 2014-2015 after volunteering a year on the Finance Committee. He also served in various capacities with numerous other community-based organizations from Rotary to Provincial Alpine Ski School, Stratford bid committee for Provincial Museum, to the Charlottetown Chamber of Commerce.

LORELEY BERRA CHEKAY K.C.

LORELEY BERRA CHEKAY K.C.

Saskatchewan

Loreley Berra Chekay, K.C. is the Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Chief Risk Officer with Saskatchewan Government Insurance where she specializes in advising on risk, good governance and the integration of legal principles within business areas. She is a past president of the CBA’s Saskatchewan Branch where she also sat on the Board of Directors from 2012 to 2021.

Since joining the CBA in 2002, she has been professionally engaged in the Saskatchewan Branch as past chair of both the Criminal South Section and Young Lawyers Section. At a National level, Loreley has been a member of the National Sections Executive Committee, an executive of the Young Lawyers Section and remains an executive of the Criminal Justice National Section.

Loreley has dedicated much of her time to volunteering with over a dozen organizations ranging from sports to public health. She continues to volunteer as a student mentor with the University of Saskatchewan College of Law which she has done for over a decade.

Bianca Kratt

BIANCA KRATT K.C.

Alberta

Bianca Kratt, K.C, native of Quebec City and member of the Huron-Wendat First Nation, is a partner at Parlee McLaws LLP in Alberta. She specializes in commercial, banking and real estate law. As the Practice Group Leader for the firms’ Commercial, Banking and Real Estate department in Calgary, she is also an expert on corporate transactions and real estate financing deals as well as acquisitions and dispositions, leasing and land developments.

Bianca served as the CBA Alberta Branch president from 2021 to 2022 and she has been an executive member of the branch since 2019. As an active member of the CBA, Bianca is past chair of the Alberta Branch Residential Real Property Law Section and is currently co-chair of the Commercial Real Property Law Section.

As a bilingual lawyer, she also chaired the Association of French Speaking Lawyers of Alberta (AJEFA) which aims at promoting access to justice in French. Bianca is also a dedicated volunteer with the Law Society of Alberta’s Association of Women Lawyers and the International Association of Women Judges, raising awareness about inequalities women face in the legal profession.

KEN MANDZIUK K.C.

KEN MANDZIUK K.C.

Manitoba

Ken Mandzuik K.C. is a partner at Tradition Law LLP, Estates and Trusts in Winnipeg, practising exclusively in trust and estate litigation. Since being called to the bar in 1997, his practice has honed-in on several aspects of civil and commercial litigation such as representing survivors of Residential Schools.

Ken is a past president of the CBA’s Manitoba Branch and is still serving as an executive member of the Branch’s Wills Section. He is the former co-chair of the MBA Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Committee – now Sexual and Gender Diversity Alliance – as well as past chair of the CBA Legislation and Law Reform Committee.

Ken is an active member of the legal community even outside of the CBA. He is an elected bencher of the Law Society of Manitoba as well as the legal member of its Judicial Inquiry Board. He currently serves as an alternate chair of the Criminal Code Review Board of Manitoba and has been director of numerous non or not for profit organizations within the legal profession and beyond.

Kelly McLaughlin

KELLY MCLAUGHLIN

Northwest Territories

Kelly graduated from the University of New Brunswick Faculty of Law in 2005 and was called to the Bar in New Brunswick in 2006. She moved north with her now-husband in 2008. Kelly first worked as Legislative Counsel and then Director of Legislation Division for the Government of the Northwest Territories. Slowly but surely, Kelly completed a Graduate Diploma in Public Administration with Dalhousie University. Currently Kelly is the Legislative Coordinator for the GNWT, providing support and advice to the Government House Leader and Cabinet on the legislative agenda and House business. 

Kelly has been an active member of the Canadian Bar Association at the Branch and National Levels. She served as the Northwest Territories Branch President for 2018-2019 after advancing through the leadership ladder. At the National level Kelly has served on the National Women Lawyers Forum and the Public Sector Lawyer Forum Executives, and for a time chaired the National Sections Subcommittee. A career highlight has been her participation as a member of the Technical Assistance Team for the CBA International Initiatives Project “Supporting Inclusive Research Development in East Africa,” which provided her with the opportunity to travel to Tanzania and Kenya. 

Carley Parish

CARLEY PARISH K.C.

New Brunswick

Carley is a managing partner with Lutz Parish Gerrish in New Brunswick, having been at the firm since 2004. She has appeared at all levels of Court in New Brunswick. She received a Bachelor of Arts in Criminology from Simon Fraser University in 2001, Bachelor of Law from the Université de Moncton in 2004. She has taught at the University of New Brunswick Law School and has taught at the New Brunswick Bar Course. She is the former president of the Law Society of New Brunswick. 

Carley received the E. Neil McKelvey Q.C. Pro Bono and Volunteer Service Award in 2019, the Sovereign’s Medal for Volunteers in 2018, the Town of Hampton Small Business Week Award for Community Leadership in 2015. Her community involvement includes serving as Chair of the Hestia House board of directors, board member of Mindcare NB through the Saint John Regional Hospital Foundation and incoming President of the Rotary Sussex. She is the only female official inducted into the North American Men’s Fast Pitch Hall of Fame. 

Tom Ullyett

TOM ULLYETT

Yukon

Tom has been a CBA member since he was in law school and a member of the CBA Yukon Branch since 1985. He has held many leadership positions within the CBA both at the branch and national level.

At the branch level, he is the co-chair of the Public Sector Lawyers Section and a member of the organizing committees for Law Day and the Mid-Winter Meeting. In the past, he has twice served on the executive committee including as branch president.

At the national level, he has served as chair of the Yukon Lawyers Section, Chair of LPAC (now CBA Well Being), as a member of the CBIA board (now Lawyers Financial) and as a member of the board of directors. In 2021 he was presented with the CBA’s Louis St. Laurent Award.

He is currently a member of Yukon University’s board of governors and recently completed a three-year term as the chair of the Employment Standards Board. In the past, Tom has served on a variety of community boards including the Yukon Women’s Transition Home and the Whitehorse Cross Country Ski Club.

Tom was a member of Yukon’s Department of Justice for over 33 years holding positions from articling student to deputy minister/deputy attorney general.

SHIRLEY A. WALSH

SHIRLEY A. WALSH

Newfoundland & Labrador

Shirley Walsh is Senior Legal Counsel with Regulatory at Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro. Her expertise centers around rates and regulatory matters as well as preparing regulatory applications and other filings before the Board of Commissioners of Public Utilities.

She has been active in the CBA’s Northwest Territories Branch and was vice president in 2016 and secretary-treasurer in 2015. Outside of the CBA, Shirley has held the role of president in 2010 as well as secretary-treasurer in 2009 with the Law Society of the Northwest Territories.

Tuma Young

TUMA YOUNG K.C.

Nova Scotia

Tuma is an L’nu from Malagawatch First Nation and his band is Eskasoni First Nation. Tuma was born into the Squirrel clan for the Rabbit clan, Tuma is the spouse of Nicolaas Honig and resides in Sydney River where he teaches Mi’kmaq Studies at Cape Breton University. 

Tuma is the first L’nuwisit (fluent Mi’kmaq speaking) lawyer called to the bar in Nova Scotia (2001) and the incoming President of the Nova Scotia Barristers’ Society for 2021-22. Tuma’s research interests are in L’nuwey Tplutaqan (Mikmaq laws), L’nuwin Pisun (Mi’kmaq Medicines) and 2 Spirit folks (2SLGBTQ+).