746 THE ADVOCATE
VOL. 80 PART 5 SEPTEMBER 2022
court. Both are former teachers who raised their children to value education,
hard work and sportsmanship. They were clearly successful. Jacqueline’s
two younger siblings boast equally impressive achievements, though
both turned to their big sister for support and encouragement when most
needed.
Throughout Jacqueline’s life, her tenacity has set her apart from the
crowd. Jacqueline became an accomplished varsity-level springboard diver
as a teenager/young adult. She was a two-time NAIA Springboard Champion
(1998, 1999), three-time All-American (1998, 1999, 2000) and Academic
All-American (2000). As a competitive athlete, she learned to be
comfortable with hard work and the desire to win, and to focus her passion.
She set her sights on becoming a lawyer in high school and earned the
scholarships she needed to support that goal.
That tenacity, however, benefitted others even more significantly. When
Jacqueline was a young teenager, Patti was diagnosed with breast cancer
and recalls Jacqueline quietly doing and saying all the right things as she
supported her mom throughout a successful battle. She did the same
through Michel’s multiple battles with cancer over the years. Many of
Jacqueline’s friends, mentees and colleagues have similarly benefitted
from that steadfast loyalty and determination.
For her undergraduate studies, Jacqueline attended Simon Fraser University,
where she obtained her bachelor of business administration and
had the honour of being convocation speaker at her graduation. She then
attended law school at the University of Victoria and won many prizes for
her advocacy skills (including the BLG Prize in Appellate Advocacy, Jim
Ellis International Law Mooting Award and Best Oralist – Final Rounds at
the Canadian Jessup International Law Moot Competition). Following her
second year of law school, Jacqueline completed summer articles with
Fraser Milner Casgrain LLP; she returned there to article after obtaining her
LL.B.
After four years practising at Fraser Milner, predominantly with (now
Justice) Susan Griffin, Q.C., as her senior counsel, Jacqueline moved to
Hunter Litigation Chambers in 2008. At Hunter, Jacqueline worked with
and learned from many highly regarded litigators—barristers who exemplified
the value of having a collegial and measured approach to complex and
often high-stress litigation. In what would prove to be characteristic of all
the environments she worked in, Jacqueline remains close with many of
her former Hunter colleagues.
In search of more time in court (and in what turned out to be a case of
“be careful what you wish for”), Jacqueline moved from Hunter to the