Keith joined Farris, Vaughan, Wills & Murphy LLP in 1971, became Partner in 1977, was appointed Queen’s Counsel in 1985, became Managing Partner in 1995, and was Chair of the firm from 2007 to 2017.
Keith has been active in the professional, business, and political life of his community. Keith has a diverse law practice, which focuses on dispute resolution, international trade law, administrative law, real estate development, and labour law, including acting for offshore and domestic corporations and private and public institutions. He has served as a commercial arbitrator, chaired commercial arbitrations, acted as counsel advising Board of Directors’ Special Committees, acted as counsel on major real estate transactions and acted as counsel for the Royal Commission on Electoral Boundaries. For many years Keith has represented the BC Lumber Trade Council in what The Economist has called the “biggest trade battle on the planet.” He has advised parties on major public and private disputes, including working with counsel on multi-billion dollar litigious matters and has participated in appellate court led mediations.
Lexpert lists Keith as one of Canada’s leading international trade lawyers. He has also been listed among the Lexpert Leading 500 Lawyers in Canada for nine consecutive years and is consistently named among Lexpert’s Leading US/Canada Cross-Border Litigators in Canada. The 2011 Chambers Global Directory lists Keith as a Leader in the area of International Trade/WTO. Keith has also received a rating of AV Pre-eminent 5.0 out of 5 legal ability rating from Martindale-Hubbell, an authoritative and global source for identifying leading lawyers and law firms.
Keith also has significant current and past business affiliations. He serves as the Chair of the Board of Directors of the BC Achievement Foundation and as a member of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars Canada Institute’s Advisory Board. Keith is a member of the UBC Law Dean’s Advisory Council. He is a former director of Lex Mundi, the world’s largest association of independent law firms, a former director of the Lester B. Pearson College of the Pacific, and a former director of the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada. In 2012, Keith was the recipient of the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal in recognition of his significant contribution within the community. Some of his other activities have included Director of BC Place Corporation, BC Development Corporation, Expo ‘86 Corporation, BC Enterprise Corporation, the Vancouver International Airport Authority, the Laurier Institution, Weldwood of Canada Limited, and Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Emily Carr College of Art and Design.
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