Local lawyer Douglas Marion has been recognized with the honourary title of Queen’s counsel by Attorney General David Eby.
“I’m honoured to congratulate this year’s QC designation recipients,” Eby said in a news release. “Each appointee has earned this very special honour by demonstrating a superb record of achievement and commitment to our province’s legal system. As professionals, volunteers and advocates, they have shown integrity and leadership in upholding the rule of law, serving their communities and striving to make British Columbia a safer and more equitable place to live.”
Marion is one of 27 appointees this year.
He was called to the B.C. bar in 1984 and has built an extensive career as a criminal trial lawyer.
Since 2002 he has held the position of local services agent to the Legal Services Society in Courtenay and Campbell River.
Marion takes on pro bono files for clients who fail to satisfy the society’s funding criteria and commits time to mentoring junior counsel, assisting local practitioners with substantive legal issues and advising on professional responsibility.
This year’s appointees have been chosen from 182 nominees for their distinguished accomplishments in areas such as continuing legal education, community volunteerism and mentorship of new legal professionals.
The QC designation is conferred each year on members of the legal profession who have been nominated by their peers and have been members of the B.C. bar for at least five years.
After the call for nominations in September, an advisory committee reviewed applications and recommended candidates to the Attorney General.
The Queen’s counsel was first conferred in 1594 when Queen Elizabeth I reserved Francis Bacon as her legal advisory. At the moment there are 492 QCs out of 11,533 practising members of the bar in B.C.
