Dean's Advisory Council

Andrew Arruda (San Francisco)

Andrew Arruda is an entrepreneur, lawyer and 2014 graduate of USask law. He is Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of the artificial intelligence company ROSS Intelligence, a leader in the legal technology industry. Arruda speaks internationally on the subjects of AI, legal technology, and entrepreneurship and has been featured in publications such as The New York Times, BBC, Wired, CNBC, CBS, Bloomberg, Fortune, Inc., Forbes, TechCrunch, the Washington Post, and the Financial Times. A member of the Forbes 30 under 30 class of 2017, as well as a 2016 TED speaker, Arruda aims to forever change the way legal services are delivered. Prior to cofounding ROSS Intelligence, Arruda worked at a Toronto litigation boutique and with the Canadian Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade, and Development in Lisbon, Portugal.

Brad Berg (Toronto)

Brad Berg is a partner at Blake, Cassels and Graydon LLP and leads the litigation group in Toronto. He has a broad practice, including international arbitrations, and is past president of The Advocates’ Society. Brad and his spouse Brian Rolfes are proud graduates of the U of S College of Law and both clerked at the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal. Brad has a Master of Laws from the University of Toronto and taught trial advocacy for six years at Osgoode Hall Law School.

Gerda Bloemraad (Calgary)

Gerda Bloemraad was born and grew up in the Netherlands. She graduated in 1968 with a Master of Laws from the University of Leiden and worked for a while for the Dutch ministry of justice. After living in Spain, Thailand, England, Greece and Toronto, Gerda and her family moved to Saskatoon in 1981, where she completed her Bachelor of Arts degree at the U of S. At the age of 45, she was accepted into the College of Law. After graduating in 1993 and her call to the bar in 1994, Gerda worked in private practice in Saskatoon, but moved in 1996 to Toronto where she was an in-house counsel for a gold mining company. She retired in 2006 and relocated to Calgary where she has been a director on various boards and an active, enthusiastic volunteer with several non-for-profit organizations.

Jody Busch (Saskatoon)

Jody Busch received both her Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Laws degrees from the U of S, graduating from the College of Law in 2007. She was involved in founding Community Legal Assistance Services For Saskatoon Inner City Inc. (CLASSIC) and is thrilled with the ongoing success of that organization. Jody articled with, and is still employed at, the Department of Justice Canada, working mainly on solicitor files involving reserve land or land that will become reserve land. 

Kurt Dahl (Saskatoon)

Kurt Dahl is an entertainment lawyer and professional musician. He wrote his Master of Laws thesis in 2009 on the future of the music industry, and has practiced entertainment law in Vancouver since 2010. He tours the country regularly with his band One Bad Son, working with some of the biggest names in the music business. He recently launched his website, www.LawyerDrummer.com, and is a partner with Murphy and Company. 

Ken Fredeen (Toronto)

Ken Fredeen is General Counsel, Secretary to the Board, and a member of the Leadership Team with Deloitte LLP in Toronto. He also represents the Canadian firm as a global qualified negotiator, with responsibilities for negotiating global and cross border client commercial agreements. He is a leader in the legal profession and the General Counsel community in particular. He is a frequent speaker and panel member on topics related to the role and challenges of the General Counsel, diversity and in house practice management. In 2013, he was recognized by Canadian Lawyer magazine as one of Canada’s top 25 most influential lawyers and judges in Canada. Ken is also a lecturer at the CCCA/Rotmans Business Leadership Program for In-house Counsel. 

Tim Gitzel (Saskatoon)

Tim Gitzel was appointed chief executive officer of Cameco on July 1, 2011 and has extensive experience in Canadian and international uranium mining activities through more than 20 years of senior management and legal experience. Tim was born and raised in Saskatchewan, graduated from the U of S College of Arts and Science in 1986 and received his Juris Doctor degree from the College of Law at the U of S in 1990. Tim is past chair and current board member of the World Nuclear Association, on the board of Washington-based Nuclear Energy Institute, a governor with Junior Achievement of Saskatchewan, and a member of the Edwards School of Business Dean’s Advisory Council.

Michele Hollins, AB Court of Queen's Bench (Calgary)

Originally from Saskatchewan, Michele obtained her B.Sc. from Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, Texas in 1987 and then her LLB from the U of S in 1992. After clerking to the Saskatchewan Court of Queen’s Bench, she worked at McCarthy Tetrault in Calgary, Alberta until 2001, when she joined the firm of Dunphy Best Blocksom LLP. She became a partner in 2004 and received her Queen’s Counsel designation in 2008. Before her appointment to the Court of Queen’s Bench of Alberta in March of 2017, Michele had a varied civil and commercial litigation practice, with a focus on employment law. She had extensive courtroom experience before all levels of Alberta Courts and in 2012-2013, was Lead Counsel to the Provincial Public Inquiry regarding Preferential Access to Health Care. Michele was involved in the Canadian Bar Association for many years, including serving as the National President in 2014-2015. She received the Louis St. Laurent Award for service to the CBA in 2010 and the Women in Law Leadership Award in 2013.

Nancy Hopkins, QC (Saskatoon)

Nancy Hopkins practices business law with an emphasis on taxation law and corporate governance. She is a member of the boards of public, Crown and non-profit corporations and has extensive experience in corporate governance issues including as chair of audit, governance and human resources committees. She received a Bachelor of Commerce (1977) and a Bachelor of Laws (1978) from the U of S, was admitted to the Saskatchewan Bar in 1979 and was appointed Queen’s Counsel in 1992. In 1997, she was granted honourary membership in the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Saskatchewan.

Matthew Lindsay (Calgary)

Matt Lindsay is a 1989 College of Law graduate. He is a partner in the Calgary litigation firm Rose LLP and is a former partner and Calgary managing partner of a national law firm. He has had a long association with the college after graduation, including as one of the creators of the college’s annual negotiation competition. He is also the executive director of ICC Fraudnet, a specialized international lawyer network established under the International Chamber of Commerce. 

Gerald Morin, SK Provincial Court (Prince Albert)

The Honourable Judge Gerald Morin was born and raised in Cumberland House, Sask., and is a member of the Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation. He attained his Certificate in Social Work from the University of Regina in 1978. He has worked as a probation officer in Northern Saskatchewan, and as a professor at the University of Manitoba where he taught Community Development. Judge Morin returned to the University of Saskatchewan and attained his law degree in 1987. He practiced law in Prince Albert, Sask., at the Pandila-Morin Law Office and appeared in all levels of court including the Supreme Court of Canada. Judge Morin received a Queens Counsel designation in 1999 - the first Aboriginal person to receive a QC designation in the history of Saskatchewan. He was appointed to the Provincial Court in 2001. Fluent in Cree, he conducts court sessions in that language. He was also a deputy judge for both the Yukon and the North West Territories

Martel Popescul, Chief Justice of the Court of Queen's Bench of Saskatchewan (Saskatoon)

Chief Justice Martel Popescul obtained a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Regina in 1976 and an Bachelor of Laws from the U of S in 1979. He was called to the Saskatchewan Bar in 1980. He was appointed Queen’s Counsel (Canada) in 1992 and Queen’s Counsel (Saskatchewan) in 2000. He served as a bencher with the Law Society of Saskatchewan from 1998 to 2003 and was president in 2001. Chief Justice Popescul was appointed to the Court of Queen’s Bench for Saskatchewan in 2006 and was appointed Chief Justice in 2012. He resides in Saskatoon. Chief Justice Popescul has previously  presented at numerous legal education seminars. He has also been on the faculty of the Trial Advocacy Workshop for more than 12 years. Chief Justice Popescul has presented on numerous occasions at both the bar admission course and the Canadian Centre for Legal Education (CPLED) program. Chief Justice Popescul was the recipient of the Saskatchewan Legal Education Society Inc. (SKLESI) Outstanding Volunteer Award (North) in 2005 and SKLESI’s Award of Excellence for Legal Education Development in 2008.

Robert Richards, Chief Justice of Saskatchewan (Regina)

Chief Justice Richards received a Bachelor of Commerce (1975) and Bachelor of Laws (1979) from the U of S and a Master of Laws from Harvard University (1982). He worked as a law clerk at the Supreme Court of Canada (1979-80), a parliamentary intern in the House of Commons (1980-81), an associate lawyer with Gowling and Henderson (1982-84), chief of staff to the Right Honourable Raymon Hnatyshyn (1984-85), director of constitutional law in the Saskatchewan Department of Justice (1985-90) and a partner at MacPherson Leslie and Tyerman LLP (1990-2004) before his appointment to the Court of Appeal for Saskatchewan. He was appointed Chief Justice of Saskatchewan in 2013.

Jeffrey Vicq (Vancouver)

Jeffrey obtained a Bachelor of Laws from the U of S in 1998, and a Master of Laws from the University of Ottawa in 2007. A partner in the Vancouver-based business law firm Clark Wilson LLP, Jeffrey’s practice focuses on intellectual property and technology law matters, and he frequently speaks and lectures on these topics throughout North America. Jeffrey was a member of the Board of Directors of the U of S Alumni Association for many years, serving as president in 2006.

Linda Zarzecny, QC (Regina)

Linda Zarzeczny is Assistant Deputy Attorney General for Saskatchewan. She is head of the Legal Services Division, which provides civil legal advice and litigation services to all Ministries, including civil, constitutional, human rights, trade and indigenous law, and legislative drafting.  She is also responsible for the Office of Public Registry Administration. Linda previously worked in private practice, as senior corporate counsel to NOVA Corporation in Calgary, and as Deputy Superintendent of Financial Institutions, and advised a wide variety of clients as Senior Crown Counsel and Executive Director of the Civil Law Division in Saskatchewan Justice. She is a graduate of the College of law, class of 1981.