CATHERINE  TYHURST:

I Practice in all areas of Family Law, Criminal Law and Apprehensions by the Ministry of Children and Families.

I was called to the bar in 1991. Before going to law school, I was a practising anthropologist having studied at the University of British Columbia and McGill University  in linguistics and economic development. I worked and lived in the Solomon Islands over a number of years and in 1986 I produced a semantic dictionary and grammar of two previously unspoken languages.

My experience as an anthropologist in a developing, previously colonized country and witnessing the emergence of the Solomon Islands into Independence gave me a greater understanding of the importance of carefully crafting national laws and a the development of a sound and functioning justice system that I had previously apprehended. I realized that I may have developed some expertise in anthropology but that I knew little about Law. I went to Law School at the University of Victoria and graduated in 1990.

I have practiced at all levels of court in this country: Provincial, Supreme and Court of Appeal of British Columbia and have been fortunate enough to make two trips to the Supreme Court of Canada in Ottawa with my partner Mr. Firestone.

I have argued cases in Small Claims court, Family Court, Child Apprehension and all manner of criminal cases from shoplifting to murder.

I am a proud advocate of the law including  due process and fairness in all proceedings and a strong believer in the presumption of innocence.