This, in a nutshell, is the problem confronting anyone who attempts to document educational history: memory is fallible, experience is idiosyncratic, and all generalizations are suspect. The problem is compounded when the particular subject has produced almost no secondary literature, where many institutions have been involved, and where the written record is both sparse and scattered. Such is the state of affairs in the history of legal education in British Columbia. In preparing this book every effort has been made to locate the best available historical sources and to make the best possible use of them. This book has required extensive research of both published materials and a range of new original sources.

Yet this book is intended to be a "user-friendly" volume. It relies heavily on first-hand accounts. Weasel-words and unnecessary jargon have been avoided, as have footnotes. An early decision to spare readers the distraction of both the detailed citation of sources and academic qualification or hedging has produced a book which, while originating in the world of scholarship, is not fully of it. A fully documented manuscript copy has been prepared for the reference of those few who may be interested. In one case (and one only) an old quotation has been modestly altered to protect the privacy of a living person. The change is minor and does not distort the quotation significantly.

Many common-place problems plague all historians. Records one would like to find (such as diaries) may never have existed at all. The survival of potentially useful documents is random or heavily skewed in subtle and not-so-subtle ways. Continuing institutions (such as law faculties, courts, universities, or law societies), buried under mounds of old paper, often make "records management" decisions that effectively obliterate history. The records of institutions that have not survived are even less likely to escape the incinerator. Kept out of historical reach in basements or attics for a generation, they are typically discarded when a home is sold or an estate distributed. While this reality severely constrains what is knowable, the demise of an institution should never be mistaken for unimportance in its day. The Vancouver Law Students' Association, the Victoria Law Students' Association, and England's Metropolitan and Provincial Law Association are examples of historically important bodies that have left no successors. Their records have not, for the most part, found a safe home. Most have probably been destroyed.

For recent times the written record can, to some extent, be supplemented by oral accounts. The University of Victoria's Aural Legal History Project, directed by Maryla Waters in the late 1970s and early 1980s, produced a remarkable historical resource. That project was carefully researched, well planned, and remarkably well executed. Its product reflects a standard of professionalism that is a model for any similar project. Many aspects of British Columbia legal history would by now have died without trace if it were not for this invaluable resource. I have relied heavily upon the Aural Legal History Project's transcripts.

Even at its best, oral history, like the written record, can never be complete. Memories fade (or grow) with the passage of time and the selection of subjects for interview is rarely random: longevity and professional success invariably skew the process that determines whose recollections enter the oral history record. Oral history is also expensive, difficult to organize, and time-consuming. A modest series of interviews were conducted as part of the research for this book. Gerry Berkowski, an oral history expert employed by the Provincial Archives of Manitoba, provided early advice and offered an invaluable short-course training programme for volunteer interviewers (see his training manual, "History of Legal Education in British Columbia: Oral History Guide" produced as University of British Columbia Legal History Paper 1994-4). A number of University of British Columbia law teachers participated in selecting interview subjects, arranging appointments, conducting interviews, and editing transcripts. The work of Lynn Smith, Peter Burns, Jim McIntyre, Bob Franson, Marilyn MacCrimmon, and Tony Sheppard is much appreciated, as is that of Christa Rathje, who typed and revised transcripts with her usual diligence, efficiency, and good humour. Our interview subjects were generous with their time, gracious, and helpful. A well chosen though small group of British Columbia legal luminaries, they included former teachers and former law students who are well known in the province: Nathan Nemetz, Diana Priestly, George Curtis, Mary Southin, Allan McEachern, Lloyd McKenzie, and Meredith McFarlane. Their willingness to recount their experiences of legal education and to share their insights is much appreciated.

The British Columbia legal community has been helpful in many ways. Mr. Justice George Murray kindly made available his treasured 1914 Law Students' Annual, John R. Lakes provided written recollections of the Class of 1949, and the Honourable J. T. Harvey, Q.C., wrote on two occasions to recount his educational experiences. Diana Priestly provided invaluable guidance, advice, and information throughout. Ron Cheffins was generous with his time and provided a good deal of material dealing with the history of legal education in Victoria — a topic that could only be touched on in this book and that merits thorough study in its own right. Don Rose and Tom Ladner of Ladner Downs have been encouraging and always helpful. The Ladner Downs librarian, Anne Beresford, has volunteered information, made the firms' archives available, and facilitated the project in every way possible. David Searle of Davis and Company made available a copy of Christine Mullins's manuscript Damarell: A History of Davis and Company, 1892–1985, and Jean Fox at Russell and DuMoulin provided a copy of Christine Mullins and Arthur E. Harvey's fine book, Russell and Dumoulin: The First Century 1889–1989. Joan Brockman, of the Simon Fraser University School of Criminology, very kindly made available a copy of her own important work on women in the British Columbia legal profession in advance of publication.

David Roberts, Q.C., editor of The Advocate, published two notifications calling for input from the legal profession and also published a quick overview of legal education in British Columbia ("An Ancient, Honorable and Learned Profession") in the May 1995 issue. Dean David Cohen of the University of Victoria law faculty provided advice, information, and practical assistance. Joan Fraser of the University of Victoria Law Library helped in many ways on many occasions. Closer to home, UBC Law Dean Lynn Smith, Associate Dean Diebolt, and law faculty administrator Nancy Wiggs have done everything they could to assist. Two members of the University of British Columbia support staff, Christa Rathje once again and Cythe Mort, have word-processed, typed, printed, mailed, or faxed as occasion demands.

Archivists and librarians are the unsung heroes of cultural preservation. They are treasured by all historical researchers for no historical research is possible without them. Many have gone well beyond the bounds of formal duty to assist this project. Tom Shorthouse and the staff at the University of British Columbia law library deserve special mention. So too do University of British Columbia archivist Chris Hives, University of Victoria archivist Chris Petter, and Bernice Chong, the archivist for the Law Society of British Columbia. Brian Young and the staff at the Provincial Archives of British Columbia were most helpful, as were the employees of the Vancouver City Archives. Jacqueline Bedard volunteered her time to assist in obtaining photographs from the Provincial Archives of British Columbia.

Alfred Watts deserves special mention. His tremendous work in documenting the history of the legal profession in the province is without equal. Watts's History of the Legal Profession in British Columbia 1869–1984 is an indispensable general reference, his articles constitute an important part of the legal history of British Columbia, and his contributions to the Aural Legal History Project both as interview subject and as interviewer have been most valuable. He has been personally helpful in all respects.

In this context, Maryla Waters too deserves special mention. The quality of the interviews produced by her Aural Legal History Project speaks to a degree of diligence that few aspire to and fewer still attain. It is unfortunate that no similar project is currently underway for time mercilessly takes its toll.

Very special thanks are due to George Curtis, the founding dean of the University of British Columbia law faculty. I have found him to be both a delightful colleague and an individual generous with time, advice, and encouragement. He very kindly made available a copy of the typescript of his own, unpublished, personal recollections and submitted to several hours of informal interview (as well as a good deal more unrecorded discussion) about legal education in the province — among many other topics.

Two research assistants have worked on this project during its relatively short gestation period. Naomi Sidebotham, formerly a University of British Columbia graduate student and now an Australian law lecturer, undertook a number of tasks that could not have been altogether pleasant. These included a preliminary survey of secondary literature and archival holdings, endless photocopying, and the futile (as it turned out) task of trying to bring order to a thoroughly unpleasant room in the law faculty basement, where records that may be important are chaotically mixed with the detritus of generations. Ms. Sidebotham's good humour is such that she never fully conveyed to me the horrors of what is known as the "spider room". Her diligence, insight, good sense, and dedication were much appreciated.

The loss of a capable research assistant is always a matter of great concern. By a stroke of tremendous good fortune Teresa Sheward stepped into the breach in the middle of 1994. Trained in anthropology, with a background in museums work and then part way through her bachelor of laws degree, Ms. Sheward entered into the task of reclaiming the history of legal education in British Columbia with tremendous enthusiasm. She has proved to be insightful, creative, well-organized, diligent, and conscientious to a fault. Her work has taken her to nearly a dozen libraries or archives in two cities, often in search of documents, records, or information that we only hoped might exist. Her assigned tasks have ranged from library searches and photocopying (always) through the management of an intriguing, ever-growing file of archival photographs. She has read, conducted interviews, brainstormed about content and presentation, proofread, and edited. Beyond these assigned tasks she has exercised her own considerable initiative to seek out new ways of identifying and using relevant information. I have valued her input, suggestions, critical insight, and unflagging energy at every point. She is an extraordinary individual.

The project has also been greatly assisted by the Continuing Legal Education Society of British Columbia. Its director, Jack Huberman, has done everything possible to render assistance. As publisher of this book, Continuing Legal Education and its staff have overseen matters relating to copyediting, book design, printing, and distribution. In addition to Mr. Huberman, thanks are due to Susan Munro and Linda Rainaldi, Louise Wallace, Sharon Wong, and Larry Colcy. Ann-Marie Metten's meticulous copy-editing has been much appreciated.

The Law Foundation of British Columbia provided essential financial support through its research grant programme.

Finally, a very special word of thanks to my family. Joanne Pue and our two daughters, Heather and Colleen, have lived this project vicariously. They have borne the brunt of a writing schedule that left far too little time for home and family. Thanks to them for their tolerance, love, and good humoured support.

W. Wesley Pue
Tsawwassen
August, 1995