The Honourable Wally Oppal*, Q.C.
Senior Counsel
Contact
Direct: 604 647 6438
Email: woppalqc@nullboughtonlaw.com
vCard
Assistant: Kelly McCaffrey
Direct: 604 647 4104
Email: kmccaffrey@nullboughtonlaw.com
Practice Areas
- Virtual Arbitration & Mediation
- Alternative Dispute Resolution
- Commercial Litigation
- Personal Injury
Areas of Expertise
- Mediation
- Arbitration
- Commercial Litigation
- Strategic Advisory
- Aboriginal Law
* Law Corporation
Profile
Wally is an experienced counsel and strategic advisor. His practice focuses on alternative and traditional dispute resolution as well as Aboriginal law.
After graduation from the University of British Columbia Law School, Wally went into private practice for a number of years. During this time he was appointed as a Special Prosecutor on many high profile criminal and commercial cases.
In 2005, he was appointed as Attorney General of British Columbia and served as Minister Responsible for Multiculturalism until 2009. Wally was involved in many significant reforms of the justice system, including the establishment of Canada’s first community court to deal with chronic offenders, developing new Rules of Court in order to promote quicker resolution of disputes and developing new initiatives in dealing with violence against women.
A lifetime resident of British Columbia, Wally has dedicated his entire working life to the pursuit of social justice and community safety. His landmark report on policing in British Columbia led to many policing reforms after its publication in 1994. Wally’s service to the public of this province, most recently as Commissioner of the Missing Women Commission of Inquiry, is of special significance.
Education
- University of British Columbia, LL.B.
- Year of Call: 1967 (B.C.)
- Certified as an International Arbitrator by the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, Houston TX (2016)
- Certified as a Mediator by the Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution, Pepperdine, CA (2016)
Video


Professional Activities
- Board Member, The Law Courts Inn
- Member, Dhillon Centre for Business Ethics Advisory Board (UBC Sauder School of Business)
- President, Law Courts Education Society of British Columbia
- Board Member, CKNW Orphans Fund
- Board Member, College of Veterinarians of BC
- Chancellor, Thompson Rivers University
- Chairman, Simon Fraser University India Advisory Council
- Board of Directors, Dr. Peter AIDS Foundation
- Commissioner, Missing Women Commission of Inquiry
- Member, Golden Key International Honour Society
- Georges A. Goyer, QC, Distinguished Service Award (2000)
- Anthony P. Pantages, QC, Medal for Outstanding Contributions in the Field of Public Safety (2005)
- Lawyer Helping Lawyer Award, Lawyers Assistance Program of B.C. (2007)
- Lifetime Achievement Award, RBC Mehfil Magazine (2010)
- Honorary Doctor of Laws, University of the Fraser Valley (2010)
- Member, Vancouver Bar Association
News & Media
- The Honourable Wally Oppal Q.C. Appointed to Advisory Position with NAFTA
- Many Steps on Path to Judiciary
Blog
- IMMIGRATION TO CANADA: OVERVIEW OF BRITISH COLUMBIAN PATHWAYS
- Will an Inquiry Really Help Murdered Aboriginal Women? [In the News on CKNW]
- Should the City of Richmond ditch the RCMP? [In the News on CKNW]
- Bill C-32 – Husbands and wives testifying against each other
- BC Health Ministry Firings – What would an inquiry look like? [In the News on CKNW]
- Disputes Don’t Have to Be Resolved In Court [Legal Series on CKNW]
- Legal Marijuana Dispensaries [In the News on CKNW]
- Life Sentences for Criminals in Canada [In the News on CKNW]
- The Threshold for Dangerous Offenders [In the News on CKNW]
- Disputes Don’t Have to Be Solved in Court [Legal Series on CKNW]
- Solving Your Disputes out of the Courtroom – Part 2
- Solving Your Disputes out of the Courtroom – Part 1
- Mediation and Arbitration in a Nutshell