Matthew
Desmarais
*

Partner

EMAIL mdesmarais@ahbl.ca
TEL 604 484 1767 604 484 1767
FAX 604 484 9767
Vancouver

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Assistant

Rheannon Montgomery
TEL604 643 2173
EMAILrmontgomery@ahbl.ca

* Practicing through a Professional Law Corporation

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Education

2018 J.D. University of Calgary
2014 B.B.A. Simon Fraser University

Bar Admission

2019 Admitted to the British Columbia Bar

Overview
Representative Experience
Publications
Events
Blogs
Professional & Community Affiliations
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Matthew Desmarais is a Partner and a member of the firm’s Labour + Employment, Business Disputes, Intellectual Property + Technology, Cannabis and Corporate/Commercial Practice Groups. Matthew is a strong advocate for his clients and seeks to provide practical, business-focused advise. He has represented clients at the Provincial Court of British Columbia, the Supreme Court of British Columbia, and the British Columbia Court of Appeal, as well as the British Columbia Human Rights Tribunal, WorkSafeBC’s Review Division, and various arbitrations.

On A Personal Note...

Matthew enjoys ice hockey, hiking, and spending time with his family and friends. Matthew also has an unhealthy addiction to cheering on the Vancouver Canucks.

Representative Experience

Taylor v. Vancouver Coastal Health Authority (No. 2), 2025 BCHRT 118 – dismissal of human rights complaint alleging discrimination on the basis of race, colour, and place of origin in the context of employment.
Pineau v. Federation of African Canadian Economics and another, 2025 BCHRT 92 – dismissal of human rights complaint alleging reverse racism.
Bonnefoy v. Northern Health Authority o/a Wrinch Memorial Hospital, 2024 BCHRT 38 – dismissal of human rights complaint alleging discrimination in the context of employment. Tribunal made rare award of costs in client’s favour
Bott v. Buy-Low Foods LP dba AG Foods, 2024 BCHRT 50 – dismissal of human rights complaint alleging discrimination in the context of employment
WorksafeBC Review Reference #R0263355 (2021) – successfully overturned a WorkSafeBC penalty of over $540,000
Kang v. Advanced Fresh Concepts Franchise Corp., 2021 BCPC 262 – successfully enforced an arbitration clause, staying the action
Impact Recruitment Inc. v. John Volken Academy Society, 2020 BCSC 1416 – successfully obtained a judgment for breach of contract and costs on a solicitor-and-own-client basis
Pai v. Ho (unreported – 2019) – successfully obtained judgment for debts owing under a verbal loan agreement.
Hindi v. Teranishi et al, 2019 BCCRT 692 – successfully defended a breach of contract claim
Realty Executives Intl. Svcs. LLC v. Vince Eidsness et al (unreported – 2019) – successfully defended a claim for breach of a franchise agreement