B.C. appoints trio of new judges to provincial bench

Three new judges will fill seats at B.C. Provincial Court beginning early next month.

The province has appointed Judge Diana Dorey, who served in numerous roles within the B.C. Branch of the Canadian Bar association, to the bench.

Dorey, who studied law at UBC, will be assigned to the Fraser Region.

READ MORE: 24 new judges appointed, new appointment process revealed

Judge Peter McDermick, who previously served as Crown counsel, and Judge Andrew Tam, who has been active with the Canadian Bar Association and B.C.’s law society, will also begin in April.

McDermick, also a UBC law graduate, will be assigned to the Northern Region, while Tam, a UVic law alumnus, will serve in the Interior Region.

Just last month, Canada’s justice minister took steps towards addressing vacancies on the B.C. Supreme Court, appointing three new judges.

That move came after B.C. Supreme Court Chief Justice Christopher Hinkson took the unusual step of speaking out, saying appointments weren’t coming fast enough, which meant cases weren’t being heard.

In September, the B.C. Supreme Court in Vancouver was forced to close family and civil chambers for an entire day due to a shortage of judges.