Biography

Bryan Baynham chairs the condo pre-sale litigation group and the aviation group at Harper Grey. He is also the past chair  of our commercial litigation group.

Bryan provides advice and acts as counsel with respect to corporate and commercial disputes and all issues relating to real estate, contract, tort and defamation litigation. 

Bryan is consistently ranked among the top lawyers in Canada in the fields of aviation and commercial insurance litigation, defamation and media law, and in legal malpractice defence. In 2011, he was part of a select group of Canadian lawyers inducted into the Litigation Counsel of America.

Education

• University of Toronto, LL.B., 1972
• University of Western Ontario, B.A., (Hons.) 1969

 Bar Admissions

• British Columbia, 1973
• Appointed Queen's Counsel, 1997

 Leadership

• Chair, Harper Grey LLP Aviation and Condo Litigation Practice Groups
• Member, Canadian Bar Association - BC Branch, Aviation Law Subsection
• Speaker for various industry and educational organizations including the Continuing Legal Education Society  of BC, the Pacific Business and Law Institute and the Society of Notaries Public of BC
• Past Member, Canadian Bar Association Special Committee on the Reform of Parliament

Recognition

• Recognized as one of the Best Lawyers in Canada in legal malpractice and defamation and media law since 2008
  
• Inducted into the Litigation Counsel of America, 2011 
• Recognized as a "Local Litigation Star" by Benchmark Litigation which vets lawyers who are repeatedly recommended by clients and peers as reputable and effective litigators, 2012
  

 

Client Work

Aviation Law

• Representing airlines and operators in hull loss subrogated actions
• Representing the pilot, operator and underwriters in multiple actions for wrongful death, personal injury and property damage in a hot air balloon crash  
• Representing an operator in a successful recovery action in British Columbia and instructing defence counsel in a Texas death claim arising out of a helicopter accident in British Columbia
• Representing a telephone company in a wrongful death claim and a hull recovery claim arising out of a helicopter colliding with a telephone line

Condo Litigation

• Representing individuals and groups of purchasers disputing pre-sale contracts for the purchase of condominiums from real estate developers in British Columbia
• Successfully negotiating the return of all or part of the pre-sale purchase deposits to buyers who wanted to exercise their rights of rescission

Defamation & Breach of Privacy

• Advising publishers and media outlets concerning defamatory and potentially defamatory statements both before and after publication
• Successfully defending a vice principal and a school board in a seven-day jury trial involving defamatory remarks made on school property
• Representing an elite athlete in a defamation action involving remarks made about her in an email exchange
• Obtaining court orders requiring internet service providers to disclose the identity of people who post anonymous comments that defame clients and breach their rights to privacy
• Pursuing claims for breach of privacy and defamation against websites and individuals who post compromising photos and comments
• Acting for cabinet ministers, members of parliament, MLAs, mayors and councillors in a variety of defamation actions

Commercial Litigation

• Representing the liquidator of the Christian Brothers of Ireland in Canada in ground breaking litigation to sell trust properties, including private schools, to satisfy outstanding claims for sexual abuse perpetrated by individual Christian Brothers at the Mount Cashel orphanage in Newfoundland. The liquidator ultimately made a recovery of $19 million by way of settlement.
• Representing defendants in the litigation following the collapse of two large financial institutions, Eron Mortgage Corporation and the Legion Credit Union
• Representing Kuehne & Nagel International at the Supreme Court of Canada in a landmark decision which changed the law by allowing third parties to claim the benefit of an exclusion clause in a contract to which they were not a party. This case also explored the boundaries between the law of contract and the law of tort and is recognized as the seminal decision in the ongoing debate concerning vicarious liability.
• Representing an employer in a trial and appeal concerning vicarious liability for an independent contractor 
  

Securities Litigation

• Representing a defendant in an 80-day securities/conspiracy trial commenced by a brokerage firm
• Representing brokerage firms and private individuals in various actions for negligence, breach of fiduciary duty, and fraud with respect to both on and off market securities transactions

Insurance

• Representing Canadian, American and international insurers in actions including liability, damage, coverage, and subrogation claims
• Acting as counsel for the Canadian Life and Health Insurance Association in an action concerning the constitutional authority of the Province of British Columbia to regulate the telemarketing of credit insurance by banks
• Representing the life insurance industry in an appeal concerning the exigibility of annuities and in particular segregated funds where the debtor/bankrupt has designated a spouse or a member of his immediate family as beneficiary of the policy

Professional Negligence

• Representing professionals including lawyers, accountants, doctors, architects, engineers, real estate agents, appraisers and insurance agents with respect to claims for professional negligence, breach of fiduciary duty and fraud

Directors and Officers Insurance

• Representing individual directors in actions whereby either company shareholders or third parties seek recovery for breach of both statutory and common law duties arising out of an individual's position as a director or officer of a company
• Advising a large international company concerning the wording and coverage provided by various layers of offshore excess insurance designed to protect directors and officers generally, and in particular their exposure to punitive damages both in Canada and the United States
• Assisting an insurance intermediary in drafting policy wording to provide directors and officers coverage for a nation-wide program for sporting organizations

 

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