British Columbia Appointees to the NWPTA Disputes Roster:
Jeffrey Thomas
- Jeffrey Thomas is Partner of Borden Lader Gervais LLP in the Vancouver office. Mr. Thomas has extensive experience providing legal advice in the context of large, complex, multi-party negotiations, as well as within competition law and trade and investment law. His practice is primarily in international and domestic trade law. Mr. Thomas’s experience is in inter-governmental negotiations relating to trade and investment; trade and investment dispute settlement; national trade and investment laws; trade and investment policy; and foreign investment and the international sale of goods and services. Active in his community, he was Chair of the British Columbia Wine Authority. Mr. Thomas holds a Master of Laws from the University of Toronto, a Bachelor of Laws from Osgood Hall Law School at York University, and a Bachelor of Arts in Economic Geography from the University of British Columbia.
Robert Deane
- Robert Deane is a Partner with Borden Ladner Gervais LLP, based in Vancouver, Canada. Mr. Deane is the National Leader of the Firm's International Trade and Arbitration Group, and an Elected Member of the Firm’s Partnership Board (the Firm’s governing body). Active in his community, he is an Elected Member of the Board of Directors of Cystic Fibrosis Canada. Previously Mr. Deane was President of the Vancouver – Lower Mainland Chapter of Cystic Fibrosis Canada. He holds a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Victoria and a Bachelor of Arts from Simon Fraser University.
Carlos Garcia
- Carlos Garcia is an Independent Lawyer. Previously Mr. Garcia was Staff Lawyer for Legal Services Society of BC. Active in his community, he is a Canadian Representative on the Joint Submission Committee: Canada-Chile Agreement on Environmental Cooperation. Previously Mr. Garcia was a Member of the Employment and Assistance Appeal Tribunal and a Volunteer Lawyer for the Northwest Immigrant Rights Project. He holds a Master of Laws in International Trade Law from the University of Arizona and a Juris Doctor from the University of British Columbia.
Sarah McEachern
- Sarah McEachern is a Partner with Borden Ladner Gervais’s (BLG) Vancouver office and her practice is in commercial and construction dispute resolution through litigation and arbitration. Ms. McEachern is also the Regional Group Manager of Disputes for Commercial and Construction for BLG’s Vancouver office. Active in her community, she is Editorial Board Member of Commercial Litigation and Arbitration Review and an Advisory Board Member of Young Canadian Arbitration Practitioners. Ms. McEachern is also a Steering Committee Member of International Bar Association. Previously she was a Steering Committee Member of Youth Attorneys in Dispute Resolution and a Regional Co-Representative for Young International Arbitration Group. Ms. McEachern holds a Juris Doctor from the University of Toronto and a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Victoria.
Laura Cundari
- Laura Cundari is a Dispute Resolution Partner at Blake, Cassels and Graydon LLP. Active in her community, Ms. Cundari is a Director with BalletBC, Vancouver International Arbitration Centre and CanArb Week. She is also a Director for the Canada Branch of Chartered Institute of Arbitrators. Previously Ms. Cundari was Chair of Touchstone Theatre Society and on the Executive Committee of Leukemia and Lymphoma Society for the BC – Yukon Region. She is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIArb). Ms. Cundari holds a Juris Doctor from the University of Victoria and a Bachelor of Arts in International Relations and Political Science from the University of British Columbia.
