Shona A. Moore, Q.C.
Shona A. Moore, Q.C. is a founding partner of Moore Edgar Lyster. Shona practices in the areas of labour and administrative law representing trade unions and their members before Labour Boards, Tribunals and all levels of Court. Her trade union practice includes unions in the private and public sectors in both provincial and federal jurisdictions.
Shona also represents individuals and equality-seeking groups in matters related to employment, human rights and privacy.
Between 1983 and 1986 she served as a Vice-Chairperson of the BC Labour Relations Board. Shona is a member of the Canadian Association of Labour Lawyers, the Canadian Bar Association and the Westcoast Legal Education and Action Fund.
Shona was appointed Queens Counsel in 1990 and has been recognized by Lexpert as one of the leading Labour and Employment lawyers in Canada.
She is a frequent guest lecturer at conferences speaking on a wide range of topics concerning labour law, human rights and privacy.
Richard L. Edgar
Rick Edgar is a founding partner of Moore Edgar Lyster.
Rick practices primarily in the areas of labour and employment, for trade unions and employees. He also has a busy trial and appellate civil litigation practice, with an emphasis on issues that affect unions and their members, including constitutional issues, defamation, personal injury and long-term disability cases. He has appeared at all levels of court, and all manner of administrative tribunals, for clients in varied and diverse employment sectors.
Mr. Edgar graduated from UBC Faculty of Law in 1983, clerked at the BC Court of Appeal, and was called to the bar in 1985.
Lindsay M. Lyster
Lindsay joined Moore Edgar Lyster in April 2010 and became a partner in 2011. She served as a Member of the British Columbia Human Rights Tribunal between 2002 and 2010. Immediately prior to that, she was the Policy Director of the BC Civil Liberties Association. Before that, Lindsay practiced labour, employment and public law with a major national law firm for seven years, appearing before all levels of courts and tribunals.
Lindsay's practice includes acting for employees and trade unions in labour, employment and human rights matters. She also conducts third party investigations and mediations. She also has a particular interest in administrative and constitutional law, having appeared before the Supreme Court of Canada in leading human rights and Charter cases.
Lindsay graduated from UBC Law School in 1991 as the gold medalist, following which she clerked for Madam Justice McLachlin at the Supreme Court of Canada, before being called to the Bar in 1993.
Lindsay is a frequent lecturer in labour, human rights, employment and administrative law. She is a member of the Canadian Association of Labour Lawyers and the Canadian Bar Association. She has also taught Administrative Law, Federalism, Charter Litigation, and Human Rights in the Workplace at UBC Law School. She is on the Executive of the Administrative Law and Human Rights Sections of the CBA - BC Branch. Lindsay also serves as the Vice President of the BC Civil Liberties Association.
Carol Whittome
Carol received her Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of Victoria in 2004, and has been called to the Bar in both British Columbia and Ontario. After articling, Carol worked as Crown Counsel for the Province of British Columbia and as a research lawyer and partner at a small law firm in Ottawa, where she taught seminars in legal research and writing, and wrote and edited various legal documents. In 2007, she joined a leading Vancouver union-side labour law firm, where she focused on research, file preparation and legal writing. Carol joined Moore Edgar Lyster as a Litigation Solicitor in 2012.
Carol has conducted seminars with a variety of union clients, and speaks as well at various conferences and education programs. Carol has a strong interest in human rights, privacy and constitutional law. She is a member of the Canadian Association of Labour Lawyers, as well as a member of the Canadian Bar Association's Labour, Human Rights, Constitutional and Research sections. She is currently serving as Secretary on the Executive Board of the Legal Research Section. Carol also has an interest in creative writing and has published several poems in literary journals and in an anthology.
Salima Samnani
Salima Samnani joined Moore Edgar Lyster in 2012 as an associate lawyer.
She obtained her undergraduate degree in Communications at Simon Fraser University before completing her J.D. at the University of Victoria. She received her Master of Laws in Cross-cultural Business Practices at the University of Fribourg (Switzerland) in 2010, graduating at the top of her class. Her master's thesis, prepared for use by the World Trade Organization and the Aga Khan Agency for Microfinance, suggested a new paradigm of banking regulations to regulate the microfinance industry.
Salima was called to the Bar in 2008, having articled at a major Vancouver law firm, focusing on bankruptcy and insolvency law. She then joined the B.C. Ministry of the Attorney General in Victoria as a Criminal Prosecutor. In this position, Salima handled a range of criminal cases, including drinking and driving offences, fraud, and assault, while gaining valuable experience making complex Charter arguments.
Immediately prior to joining Moore Edgar Lyster, Salima was Associate Counsel for the Missing Women Commission of Inquiry.
Salima is developing a varied litigation practice at Moore Edgar Lyster, including labour, human rights and employment law matters.
Salima is a member of the Trial Lawyers Association of B.C. and the Canadian Association of Labour Lawyers, and is a member of the CBA-BC's Labour, Employment, Administrative, Human Rights and Non-Profit Sections.
Gurleen S. Sahota
Gurleen S. Sahota is an associate lawyer at Moore Edgar Lyster.
Gurleen was called to the bar in BC in 2008 after graduating from Windsor Law School in Ontario. He articled at a boutique labour and criminal law firm in the Okanagan where he toured the Interior and Okanagan BC Provincial Court circuit before joining Moore Edgar Lyster in the summer of 2009.
Gurleen works primarily with our trade union clients on grievances and with individuals on employment standards issues.
Gurleen is a member of the Canadian Association of Labour Lawyers and the Canadian Bar Association. He is active in the CBA's labour law, employment law and human rights subsections. He also sits on the Environment Advisory Committee of Delta.
Jessica Derynck
Jessica Derynck is an associate lawyer at Moore Edgar Lyster.
Jessica was called to the Bar in both BC and Ontario in 2010 after articling with a union side labour law firm in Toronto.
Jessica graduated from the University of Victoria Faculty of Law in 2009. Jessica worked as a research assistant for a number of professors and spent her last semester working in the Law School's legal clinic representing clients in Provincial Court, Supreme Court chambers and at administrative tribunals.
Jessica is a member of the Canadian Association of Labour Lawyers and the Canadian Bar Association. She is active in the CBA's labour law, employment law, administrative law and human rights subsections.
In her spare time Jessica enjoys cycling, rock climbing, kayaking and camping, so she is happy to be living and working in Vancouver.
James Mark Richardson
James Mark Richardson is an associate lawyer at Moore Edgar Lyster. James worked as a researcher for the firm in the summer of 2009, before clerking at the Supreme Court of British Columbia in 2010-2011. Following his clerkship, James articled with the firm prior to being called to the Bar in 2012.
Before Law School, James was involved in the labour movement. He sat on the Executive Board of CUPE Local 23 in several different capacities, was involved in two rounds of collective bargaining, co-chaired the CUPE BC Library Committee, and was an occasional facilitator for CUPE, particularly focused on educating young workers about their rights in the workplace.
James is dedicated to advancing the rights of workers through law. Consequently, he has a particular interest in Charter Litigation and Human Rights.
James received his J.D. from the UBC Faculty of Law in 2010, and his B.A. in Political Science from Simon Fraser University in 2007. He is a member of the Canadian Bar Association and the Canadian Association of Labour Lawyers. He is a member of the CBA-BC Civil Litigation, Labour, Employment and Pension and Benefits Sections.
In his spare time, James enjoys playing with his children, writing, reading and thinking of excuses to avoid cycling and running.
