Mary Saunders was admitted to the British Columbia bar in 1975. In 1991 she was appointed to the Supreme Court of British Columbia, and in 1999 to the Court of Appeal for British Columbia and the Court of Appeal of Yukon where she served until her retirement in 2024.
While practicing law, she served for several years on each of the British Columbia Police Commission including for a time as the Acting Complaint Commissioner, the Board of the Justice Institute of British Columbia, and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police External Review Committee. She also served on two Royal Commissions of Inquiry, an Industrial Inquiry Commission, and the Premier’s Advisory Council on Native Affairs.
Mary was appointed Queen’s Counsel in 1989.
While on the bench Mary served as the Chair for the (decennial) 2022 Federal Electoral Boundaries Commission reconfiguring the province’s electoral boundaries, report completed in 2023. In 2009 Mary was awarded the Anthony P. Pantages, Q.C. Medal in recognition for contributions to the field of justice in British Columbia.
Professional & Community Involvement
Mary has chaired and participated in numerous educational programs and diverse professional conferences including those organized by the Continuing Legal Education Society and the National Justice Institute, addressing a broad array of topics. These include ethics, organizational collegiality, court procedure, privacy, class actions, employment law, topics in civil and criminal law, the law relating to minors, and dispute resolution processes.
Mary, raised in the beautiful Nicola Valley, sees her community as the whole of British Columbia, having travelled extensively to all regions of the province for her work. She is committed to the province’s well-being, with emphasis on the needs of the province served by the legal profession.
Year of Call
- British Columbia, 1975
Education
- LLB, University of British Columbia, 1974
- BSc, (Mathematics and Economics), University of British Columbia, 1971