Award deadlines & details

Queen's Counsel

Deadline: September

Additional information

Under the Queen's Counsel Act, the Lieutenant-Governor in Council, on the recommendation of the Attorney General, may bestow on lawyers in British Columbia the honorary title of Queen's Counsel (QC) to recognize exceptional merit and contribution to the legal profession. To make this appointment process more transparent and accessible, the Ministry of Justice has a formal system for nominating candidates.

Candidates must:

1. Belong to the B.C. bar and have been members for at least five years.

2. Demonstrate professional integrity, good character and excellence in the practice of law. Such excellence could be determined by any of the following conditions:

They are acknowledged by their peers as leading counsel or exceptionally gifted practitioners.
They have demonstrated exceptional qualities of leadership in the profession, including in the conduct of the affairs of the Canadian Bar Association, the Law Society of British Columbia and other legal organizations.
They have done outstanding work in the fields of legal education or legal scholarship.

UVic recipients include: