David G. Coles, Q.C.

David G. Coles, Q.C.

E-mail:  dcoles@boyneclarke.ca

Phone:  902.460.3422

Fax:  902.463.7500

Assistant:  Francine Cusack-MacKenzie - fcusack@boyneclarke.ca

Born in Halifax, Nova Scotia, David has appeared on appeals to the Supreme Court of Canada on four separate occasions and participated in over 170 reported decisions.  His practice includes representing a number of institutional clients including Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Canadian National Railways, Meridian Construction Inc., National Bank, Nova Scotia Power and Amica.  David appears regularly in the Supreme Courts and Courts of Appeal of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island.  His practice includes class actions / mass tort work.

David is a Partner and practices in the areas of Business Litigation, Civil Litigation, Estate Litigation, Media Law, and Construction Law.  David is presently the Chair of the firm’s Commercial Litigation section and has been named the “Halifax Best Lawyers Defamation and Media Law Lawyer of the Year” for 2012 by Best Lawyers Publication. In November 2011 David was named as a Representative of Nova Scotia on the Atlantic Regional Committee for the Supreme Court Advocacy Institute.

EDUCATION

  • 1984: LL.B., Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia
  • 1981: Bachelor of Arts, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia

EMPLOYMENT

  • 1991 – Present: Litigation Partner (Commercial Law/Media Law), BOYNECLARKE LLP, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia
  • 1985 – 1991: Articling Clerk/Associate, BOYNECLARKE LLP, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia
  • 1975 – 1985: Correctional Services - Department of Attorney General (Summer Employment/Part-time/Full-time); Research Officer/Probation Officer, Halifax, Nova Scotia

COMMUNITY ACTIVITIES

  • Lecturer / pro bono counsel – King’s College School of Journalism
  • Member – Board of Directors of Spartan Lifestyle Centre
  • Past President – Dartmouth Players Community Theater Company
  • Past Provincial Committee Member – OxFam Canada
  • Past Member – Nova Scotia Barristers' Society Media Relations Committee
  • Member – Nova Scotia Stamp Club

BAR ACTIVITIES

  • Representative of Nova Scotia – Atlantic Regional Committee for the Supreme Court Advocacy Institute
  • Member – Construction Law Subsection Canadian Bar Association
  • Member (Past Provincial Chairman) – National Media Law Subsection Canadian Bar Association
  • Board Member – Ad IDEM

HONOURS

  • Appointed Queen's Counsel (2005)

PUBLICATIONS

  • Numerous articles on freedom of expression and media law related topics in national legal publications
  • The Public Inebriate in Provincial Correctional Institutions - 1973 to 1975 - Department of Attorney General
  • A History of the Administration of Jails in the Province of Nova Scotia - Nova Scotia Criminal Justice Communications Project
  • Blueprint for Provincial Assumption of Responsibility for Correctional Institutions - Correctional Services - Department of Attorney General

APPEARANCES

  • Mr. Coles has appeared in all levels of Courts in the Province and in four separate cases (involving numerous hearings) before the Supreme Court of Canada.

AWARDS

  • Dalhousie Entrance Scholarship
  • Soroptimist Youth Citizenship Award for the Maritimes and New England
  • Included in “The Best Lawyers In Canada” (2006 – Present)
  • Named the Halifax Best Lawyers Defamation and Media Law Lawyer of the Year” for 2012

AREAS OF PRACTICE