Caitlin Ohama-Darcus

Associate

E: cohamadarcus@nst.ca
T: 604.628.8486

  • Biography
  • Experience

Caitlin Ohama-Darcus carries on a general commercial and civil litigation practice with a particular interest in appeals and the resolution of complex commercial disputes. She has sharp analytical skills and a talent for distilling complex questions and communicating clearly and persuasively. She has appeared before the British Columbia Supreme Court and Court of Appeal, and has assisted with matters before all levels of court, including the Federal Court and the Supreme Court of Canada. Caitlin is also an adjunct professor at the UBC Faculty of Law where she teaches Advanced Contract Law to upper-year students.

  • Clerk to Madam Justice Kirkpatrick and Mr. Justice Goepel of the Court of Appeal for British Columbia (2015/2016)
Education
  • British Columbia Bar, 2016
  • J.D., University of British Columbia, 2015
  • B.A., University of British Columbia, 2011
Recognition
  • Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch in Canada™, 2022
  • Rising Star in Dispute Resolution, The Legal 500 Canada, 2021
  • Excellence Award Winner for Commercial Litigation Team of the Year, Canadian Law Awards 2020
  • Received the Blakes Scholar Award and the Wesbrook Scholarship, the University of British Columbia’s highest designation for academic achievement, leadership, and community involvement. She was also the recipient of numerous academic awards, including awards for contract law, real estate transactions, constitutional law, and advanced legal research.
Community Involvement
  • In addition to her commercial litigation practice, Caitlin carries on an active pro bono practice
  • Member of the Access Pro Bono Appeal Roster Program
Cases of Interest
  • Concord Pacific Acquisitions Inc. v. Oei, 2019 BCSC 1190
    Caitlin is junior counsel to Irwin G. Nathanson, Q.C. and Stephen R. Schachter, Q.C. in this matter, which involves a claim in excess of $350 million brought by Concord Pacific Acquisitions Inc. against three named defendants, including renowned Singaporean businessman, Hong Leong Oei. At the heart of this dispute was a purported transaction to develop a significant piece of waterfront land owned indirectly by Mr. Oei, described in the trial court’s reasons as a “multiyear billion-dollar development.” The trial took place before the British Columbia Supreme Court over 48 days in 2018 and 2019 and NST counsel were successful.
  • Ocean Wise Conservation Association v. Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation, 2018 BCSC 196, 2019 BCCA 58
    Together with R. J. Randall Hordo, Q.C., Caitlin served as counsel for the Vancouver Aquarium in its challenge to a Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation bylaw that banned cetaceans (whales, dolphins and porpoises) within all city parks, including Stanley Park where the Vancouver Aquarium is based. NST was successful in the Aquarium’s application for judicial review in the British Columbia Supreme Court and the litigation led to a re-negotiation and extension of the license agreement between the Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation and the Aquarium.
  • Klassen obo White Rock Pride Society v. Star of the Sea Parish, 2020 BCHRT 120
    Co-counsel for the White Rock Pride Society in a discrimination complaint brought against a parish of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Vancouver. As counsel for the White Rock Pride Society, successfully defended an application to dismiss the complaint. The complaint now awaits a full hearing before the B.C. Human Rights Tribunal.
  • British Columbia (Director of Civil Forfeiture) v. PacNet Services Ltd. et al,
    Part of the legal team, led by R.J. Randall Hordo, Q.C. and Karen L.M. Carteri representing PacNet Services Ltd. and other defendants in civil forfeiture proceedings brought by the Director of Civil Forfeiture. Those proceedings are ongoing before the Supreme Court of British Columbia.
  • Caitlin was counsel for ACME Education Services Inc. and one of its founders, William Yu, in an action brought by another Vancouver education consulting company, BL Education Consulting Ltd. (SCBC Vancouver Registry No. S-194876)
  • Together with Karen L.M. Carteri, Caitlin was pro bono counsel for a group of clients concerned with the COVID-19 visitor restrictions in place in licensed long-term care (“LTC”) and assisted living facilities throughout British Columbia.
Publications and Presentations