Barnhardt brings broad experience to general counsel role

You have to be a bit of a legal Renaissance man to take on the role of general counsel for a university, and Don Barnhardt—who became UVic’s general counsel this summer—brings just such breadth of experience to the position.

After earning his BA (’82) and LLB (’85) from UBC, Barnhardt worked for Canadian Pacific Railway for more than 20 years, serving as solicitor and commercial coordinator, senior counsel and corporate secretary and assistant general counsel. During those years, he gained broad experience in corporate, commercial and finance law, real estate law, corporate governance, administrative and environmental law and litigation.

“This broad range of work helped make it easier for me to step in here at UVic and fairly readily assume the role of general counsel,” Barnhardt explains. “I was attracted to UVic because of the opportunity to be a part of an organization that contributes so much to society. And I was also impressed by the collegial atmosphere and the cooperative way that people work together here.”

As general counsel, Barnhardt reports to the vice-president finance and operations and works with the administration on the development of policies and procedures to ensure legal compliance, manage risk and provide broad oversight on all legal and regulatory requirements affecting the university.

That includes contracts, such as those relating to research, technology transfer, purchasing and real estate; intellectual property and copyright matters; freedom of information and protection of privacy; international agreements for student and faculty exchange programs; and development of university policies. In this position, he will be working closely with all units on campus including UVic Innovation and Development Corporation, the University Secretary’s Office, UVic Archives, and the Office of Research Services.

“I expect my work will be quite heavily weighted to the legal dimensions of UVic’s relationships and interactions with other organizations and businesses,” says Barnhardt. But he is also there to help members of the UVic community with any individual questions pertaining to legal aspects of their work at the university.

Barnhardt was born in Cranbrook and has family on Vancouver Island. He enjoys running and has completed several marathons.