38th Parliament Members
at dissolution on April 14, 2009

MLA: Hon. Wally Oppal, Q.C. Vancouver-Fraserview Attorney General and Minister Responsible for Multiculturalism Elected: 2005 BRITISH COLUMBIA LIBERAL PARTY

Wally was appointed Attorney General on June 16, 2005. He was elected in the riding of Vancouver-Fraserview in the 2005 provincial general election.

Wally has dedicated his entire working life to improving social justice and community safety. He was born in the Vancouver-Fraserview neighborhood, attended law school at UBC, and then returned home to practice law for 14 years.

Wally was appointed to the County Court of British Columbia in 1981 and to the Supreme Court of British Columbia in 1985. In 2003, he was appointed to the British Columbia Court of Appeal.

Wally’s passion for the Canadian legal system is exemplified by the various positions he has held throughout the years:

• Permanent group leader of the Advocacy course of the Continuing Legal Education Society
• President, Law Courts Education Society of British Columbia
• Former Director, Family Services of Greater Vancouver
• Member, 1993 Ad Hoc Advisory Committee for a National Strategy on Community Safety and Crime Prevention
• Director, B.C. Coalition for Safer Communities
• Member, Supreme Court National Criminal Law Programme Judges Criminal Law Committee
• Author of report of the Independent Commission of Inquiry into Policing in British Columbia.

Wally is an avid reader, enjoys staying physically fit by playing basketball, as well as coaching in the Steve Nash basketball league. In his teens, Wally had a professional baseball tryout. Wally is married and has two children, both still in school.