Colin A. Millar, Partner

Colin Millar is a partner in the Litigation Group.  His preferred areas of practice are Family, Estate, Patent and Trademark Litigation.  A widely respected and highly regarded practitioner, Colin was appointed as amicus curiae ("friend of the court") to the Supreme Court of Canada in 2006 to provide the Court with an independent review of the issues in a complex family law case.  He considers this appointment both a great honour and a highlight of his career.

Colin is renowned for his practicality and level-headed approach to advising his clients.  "When you first meet with a client" he explains, "they're lost in a sea of confusion.  They are people whose life experiences you share as you're helping them through a very difficult time.  I always advise clients that the laws can only effectively deal with the financial aspects of their case, not the emotional wounds.  I explain to them what the law is, how the process works, how it applies to their specific situation, and what the likely outcome will be.  Hopefully by the end of the first or second meeting they feel they're standing on solid ground".

His practical approach is complimented by his sensitivity to the plight his clients often find themselves in.  "I appreciate that it's a very difficult time for clients.  If everyone acts reasonably then you can resolve the issues expeditiously.  If one party is unreasonable, then it requires judicial intervention to settle the matter and that's expensive.  I assure them that I will get them through the process relatively unscathed and I arm them with realistic expectations of what results can be achieved."

Colin has trained in advanced commercial mediation with the Continuing Legal Education Society of B.C. and took his arbitration training through the B.C. Arbitration and Mediation Institute.  With Royal Assent given to the Family Law Act on November 24, 2011, Colin and a group of other senior family law practitioners are working to advance the use of arbitration in resolving Family Law disputes.  The new Family Law Act, when proclaimed into force, will encourage parties to resolve their disputes through family dispute resolution processes including mediation and arbitration.  Colin is confident the advantages of arbitration including cost factors, flexibility in the process, accessibility and confidentiality will promote the rapid growth of arbitration as a means of resolving family disputes.  This will be especially true in the outlying regions of the Province where limited access to the Courts and the inherent delays cause great frustration to the parties involved in a family law dispute.  As an arbitrator, Colin is willing to do everything necessary to allow the parties to use the arbitration process to find a speedy and fair resolution to their differences.

The great respect and goodwill Colin has built during his many years of practice and his volunteerism at pro bono legal clinics has resulted in many thank you cards and letters from clients and their relatives as well as a slew of referrals from his former clients, fellow firm members and other lawyers.

Professional Affiliations

• Law Society of British Columbia
• Canadian Bar Association
• Family Advocates Group

Background

Colin was a Charter student at Simon Fraser University where he obtained an Honors degree in Economics.  He received his LL.B. from The University of British Columbia in 1975 before being called to the Bar in 1976.  He is married with three grown children.  He coached them through baseball and soccer while they were growing up and remains involved in community sports. He is currently the Vice President of the West Vancouver Soccer Club where he continues to coach and referee.

Publications