The President is the face of the Yukon Branch of the Canadian Bar Association (CBA). As its spokesperson and members’ advocate, the President is responsible for key relationships within the organization: other branches, the National office, Council, the Board of Directors, the Executive Officers, legal groups in Yukon Territory and nationally, the public and the media.
We are proud to present the biographies of our current Yukon Branch President and our Executive Officers.
Sylvie McCallum Rougerie
President
Sylvie McCallum Rougerie has been counsel with the federal Department of Justice since 2014. She joined the Yukon office of the Department of Justice in 2019, where she practices civil litigation. From 2014 to 2019, she worked in the Human Rights Law Section of the Department of Justice in Ottawa, where her practice focused primarily on international human rights law and ss. 7-15 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Sylvie holds a J.D. degree from the University of Toronto and an LL.M. in Advanced Studies in European and International Human Rights Law from Leiden University. Her graduate work was awarded the 2017 Thoolen NJCM-Dissertation Prize by the Dutch Section of the International Commission of Jurists, which led to the publication of her thesis under the title “Police Failures to Combat Sexual Assault: Lessons from International and Regional Human Rights Law for Improving Accountability under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms”. Sylvie is on the editorial board of the Philippe Kirsch Global Justice Journal and is the vice-president of the Yukon Branch of the Canadian Bar Association (CBAY).
Gavin Gardiner
Past President
Gavin Gardiner is a lawyer in the Whitehorse office of Woodward & Company LLP and is currently called as a member of the Law Society of Ontario and the Law Society of Yukon. Gavin has served as a Judicial Law Clerk to two Justices of the Court of Appeal for British Columbia and assisted on cases heard by the Yukon Court of Appeal. For nearly a decade prior to attending law school at the University of Ottawa, Gavin served the Carcross/Tagish First Nation in many roles, including Legislation/Policy Analyst, Implementation and Negotiation Official and Senior Government Official (Executive Director). He holds Bachelor of Arts (double honours) in Literature and Political Studies from the University of Saskatchewan and a certificate in Conflict Resolution and Negotiation from the Justice Institute of British Columbia.
Bruce Warnsby
Vice President
I am a Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in Citizen, a member of the Crow clan and life long Yukoner. I have a significant disability of written communication and am passionate about supporting both Indigenous and disabled people in the legal profession. In 2008 I obtained a BA in History and Political Science from UBC. Prior to law school I worked for Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in in Treaty implementation with our Right Honourable Past President. I preformed in the 2010 Vancouver Opening Ceremonies. In 2014 I completed my Law Degree at University of Victoria. I had the great fortune to intern with the Maori Land Court and Waitangi Tribunal in New Zealand. Following my call to the bar in 2016, I practiced for 2 years sole practitioner in criminal defence. I then worked for Yukon Government for a year. I am currently a sole practitioner. I am also member of the Judicial Council of the Territorial Court, the Yukon Human Rights Panel of Adjudicators and the Yukon Water Board. Outside of work, I enjoy walking a lot most often listening to a Science Fiction or history audiobook and dancing with the Han Singers. I have a passion for good peanut-free food and all thing nerdy.
Sarah Hart
Vice-President
Sarah Hart is an associate at Lamarche, Lang & Barrett and is also a member of the Law Society of Upper Canada. Sarah practices in the areas of Wills and Estates, Family Law and Civil Litigation. Prior to Sarah’s move to Whitehorse, she began her legal career in Thunder Bay, Ontario, where she worked for a mid-sized law firm that primarily focused on Family Law and Child Protection. Sarah is passionate about children’s law issues and is an active member in the legal community. Outside of work, Sarah can be found running after her dog, Sadie, and showing off her subpar hockey skills.
Luke Faught
Secretary-Treasurer
Luke has been a lawyer since 2010, and has been called to the Bar in the Yukon, Alberta, and Ontario. His practice has a wide focus which includes: municipal bylaw prosecutions, corporate and contract disputes, personal injury, and human rights. He has also given advice to municipalities on their rights and obligations. He has represented clients in all levels of Court in the Yukon and Alberta.
Luke writes articles intended to educate the public on issues affecting their legal rights, and his work has been published in Yukon News, Yukon University’s academic journal Northern Review, and Alberta Outdoorsmen magazine.
Thomas Ullyett
Past-President
- PresidentCurrently co-chair of the PS Lawyers Section
- Member of both the Law Day Organising Committee and the Mid Winter Organising Committee
- CBA member since 1983; CBA-Y member since 1985
- Co-founder of the following CBA-Y sections: Young Lawyers Section (~ ‘88) and Public Sector Lawyers (~ ’92)
- Co-founder of the Law Day Charity Fun Run and Walk (’91)
- Past CBA-Y President (~ ’95-’96)
- Member, CBIA Board of Directors (’01-’07)
- Member, CBA Board of Directors (’95-’96 & ’16-’17)
- National chair: Young Lawyers Conference (~ ‘96-‘97) and Legal Profession Assistance Conference (~ ’12-‘14)
Cynthia Malouin
Executive Director
Cynthia has been with the CBA Yukon Branch since 2019. Prior to Cynthia’s move to Whitehorse, she worked as a lawyer in a Legal Clinic in Ontario where she provided advice and representation on various legal issues, including human rights, employment law, housing, and social assistance. Cynthia holds a LL.L and J.D. degree from the University of Montreal and the University of Ottawa and is currently called as a member of the Law Society of Ontario and the Law Society of Yukon. Cynthia is on the board of the Humane Society Yukon and on the board of the Victoria Faulkner Women’s Centre.
Sylvia Gibson
Executive Director
Sylvia has been with the CBA Yukon Branch since 2015. Previously she worked as executive director for the Yukon Agricultural Association (2011-2013) and as a Project Supervisor for Canada World Youth (Ukraine, Tanzania and Canada 2006-2010). She also works part-time as a consultant preparing business plans for agricultural producers. Sylvia has her BSc. from the University of Saskatchewan. Together with her husband and young sons, she operates a hobby farm just North of Whitehorse.
Jessica Lott-Thompson
Past-President
PresidentJessica has served as Director of Human Rights with the Yukon Human Rights Commission since January 2015. Jessica is passionate about reconciliation and access to justice, as well as wellness and equality in the legal profession. She was formerly a Federal Prosecutor with the PPSC in Nunavut, and an adjudicator with the Nunavut Human Rights Tribunal. In 2014, Jessica served as an international election observer in rural Ukraine for the OSCE Office of Democratic Institutions and Human Rights. She is called to the Bar in both Nunavut (2008) and Yukon (2014) and holds an LL.B. from the University of Victoria (2003), an M.A. in Human Security and Peacebuilding (Royal Roads 2006), and is currently nearing completion of an LL.M. in Constitutional Law from Osgoode Hall, York University (exp. 2016). Jessica is fluent in French and Spanish, and enjoys living in the woods near Whitehorse with her partner and four young children.
Vincent Larochelle
President
PresidentVincent is currently a staff lawyer with Yukon Legal Aid (YLSS). Previously Vincent has worked as a law clerk to Justice Louis L. LeBel and Justice Suzanne Côté, (2015) as a field officer at the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue (Eastern, Western and Central Africa 2014), Associate Lawyer Asler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP (Greater New York City Area 2011-2013), Associate Consultant McKinsey & Company (2010). Vincent was a legal intern with the International Criminal Court in 2010 and studied both at McGill University and Oxford University.
Rod Snow
Past President