With the closing of the 2022-23 academic year, we welcome a new cohort of graduates to the TRU Law alumni community. We’d like to introduce one of our newest alumni and the class of 2023 valedictorian, Benedict Turner.

Ben was born and raised in Vancouver, BC. He received a Bachelor of Arts in Government from Claremont McKenna College. Between his undergraduate degree and beginning at TRU Law, Ben worked in professional services in San Francisco, CA and in the non-profit sector in Vancouver.

Ben was deeply engaged in the TRU Law community. He served as a research assistant to Professors Robert Diab, Andrew Pilliar, Nicole Schabus and Law Librarian Mary Hemmings, and as a teaching assistant to Professor Jeffrey B. Meyers. He served as the Junior Co-Chair and Chair of the SLS Conference; won the TRU Law Environmental Negotiation; represented TRU as an Oralist in the 2022 Wilson Moot; served as the student representative on the TRU Faculty Council Moots Committee; helped organize and represent TRU at the 2022 Hoop-Law Charity Basketball Tournament; and contributed to the Gavel.

Ben was a Dean’s List recipient and was awarded the Dean’s Course Prizes in Crime: Law & Procedure; Legal Perspectives; Ethical Lawyering; Family Law; and Business of Law. He was the recipient of the Law Foundation Public Interest Award. Ben and his teammates won the “Battle of the Apps” Competition in Professor Sykes’ “Designing Legal Expertise Systems” class and represented TRU at the Georgetown Law Iron Tech Lawyer Showcase.

After graduation, Ben looks forward to clerking at the Supreme Court of British Columbia in Victoria before returning to practice at Fasken LLP in Vancouver.

Finish the sentence

1. If it weren’t for law school, I wouldn’t have known I had very strong legal database preferences (#CanLII5eva, Lexis > Westlaw).
2. The thing I’ll miss most about living in Kamloops is being in such close proximity to my favourite people.
3. The thing I’ll miss least about law school is the curve the “Thompson Rivers University Faculty of Law Grading and Ranking Policy.”
4. If I had the power to appoint one member of the faculty to the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC), it would be a toss-up between Professors Robert Diab and Chris Hunt, because hearing Professor Diab’s voice ask questions at the SCC would be like a soothing jurisprudential podcast, but Professor Hunt would also get to opine on any “unconscionable” decisions.
5. Be kind, work hard, and enjoy yourself sums up some of the best advice I heard during law school.
6. Now that law school is over, I’m looking forward to (telling myself) I will somehow now have the mental stamina to read more for pleasure.

Choices

1. Books or Netflix?
   Crave (it’s the best place to watch Succession).

2. Coffee or tea?
   Coffee – shout out to Amplified Café for being the go-to source of caffeination.

3. Early bird or night owl?
   During the semester? Mornings are great. During finals? Daylight is an afterthought.

4. Cat or dog?
   Dogs. Sniffer search cases are all the more interesting when judges acknowledge the investigators are good dogs.

5. Skiing, snowboarding or après skis?
   Skiing to après, right about when you break your thumb.

6. Papers or exams?
   Papers, even if it means wrestling with the McGill guide.