Samuel I. Wilder, Q.C.

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Senior Partner

PREFERRED AREAS OF PRACTICE

  • Personal Injury
  • Insurance Litigation
  • Labour Law / Wrongful Dismissal

EDUCATION & AWARDS

  • graduated St. John’s High School 1957
  • Bachelor of Arts University of Manitoba 1961
  • Bachelor of Laws University of Manitoba 1965
  • Dean’s Honour List in each year of law school
  • H.I. Corne prize for constitutional law 1962
  • Isbister scholarship for highest standing in second and third years 1963 & 1964
  • Margaret Hypatia-Crawford scholarship for highest standing in final year in 1965
  • University of Manitoba/Law Society of Manitoba Gold Medal
  • called to the Manitoba Bar July 1965
  • appointed Queen’s Counsel 1993

EMPLOYMENT HISTORY

  • articled with Walsh Micay & Company 1961 to 1965
  • practiced as an associate with Walsh Micay & Company 1965 to 1966
  • Attorney General’s Department as crown attorney (criminal) 1966 to 1967
  • returned to private practice 1967 establishing the law firm of Wilder Wilder & Langtry (then Wilder Wilder & Associates) and have been a senior partner there since

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

  • Head of Civil Litigation Department at Wilder Wilder & Langtry since its inception
  • Initially practiced in all fields of civil, domestic, and criminal litigation
  • Numerous jury trials ranging from murder, rape, arson and armed robbery throughout the late 1960s, 1970s, and early 1980s
  • Numerous appearances in all Courts in the Province, in the Family Law field and major civil litigation matters, particularly in the catastrophic personal injury field
  • Since mid-1980s, preferred area of practice has been in civil litigation, with particular emphasis on:
    • Personal Injury;
    • Tort litigation, generally, including defamation;
    • Product liability;
    • Class Actions;
    • Commercial Litigation;
    • Defence insurance – professional liability, errors and omissions insurance coverage for agents, brokers, professionals, and general negligence liability;
    • disability insurance
    • Labour law – wrongful dismissal
    • Immigration
    • Intellectual property cases over the years as a General Litigator

EXTRA CURRICULAR ACTIVITIES

St. John’s High School and University of Manitoba:

  • On National Executive of B’nai Brith Youth
  • President of Sigma Alpha Mu Fraternity
  • Active at all levels of the University of Manitoba Students’ Union and, in particular, as advertising manager for all its publications including the newspaper, The Manitoban , and the yearbook, The Brown & Gold , for the years 1958 to 1961
  • Active with the University of Manitoba Liberal Party

Extra Curricular Activities in the Legal Profession:

  • Law Society of Manitoba
    • Non-bencher member of the Standards Committee 1982-1990
    • Elected bencher 1984-86 and 1993-96
    • Chairman of the Public Relations Committee; member of the Discipline and Constitution Committees in 1984-85
    • Vice-Chairman of the Standards Committee, member of the Constitution and Admissions and Education Committees in 1985-86
    • Member of the Graeme Garson Fund Advisory Board since 1990
    • Past Vice Chair of the Professional Liability Claims Fund Committee and member of the Practice and Ethics Committee, the Discipline Committee and the Manitoba Law School Foundation Committee
    • Sat as an ethics examiner for the Bar Admissions course for articling students
    • Member of Discipline Committee panel and sat on hearings into charges laid against members in that capacity
  • Manitoba Bar Association
    • Active in various committees of the Manitoba Bar Association since graduation and, in particular, past Chairman of the Civil Litigation Subsection
    • Held most executive offices including President in 1981-82
    • Honourary life member
  • Canadian Bar Association
    • Past member of the National Communications Committee
    • Member of the National Executive in 1982-83
    • Member of the Member Services Committee in 1983-87
    • Vice-President of Member Services Committee in 1986-87
  • Manitoba Law Foundation
    • Board member 1991-93
  • American Trial Lawyers Association
    • Current member
    • Past member of the Canadian Liaison Committee and frequent lecturer at seminars
  • Advocates Society of Manitob
    • Current member

    Legal Aid Manitoba

    • Board member September 1986 to 1989
  • General
    • Member of Manitoba Court of Queen’s Bench Case Management Committee chaired by the Honourable Mr. Justice MacInnes and member of several earlier committees dealing with the Manitoba Court of Queen’s Bench Rules
    • Member of the cast of the 1998 production of Guys & Dolls by the Manitoba Bar Association as a fundraiser for the Manitoba Theatre Centre

COMMUNITY & CIVIC ACTIVITY

  • Past member of and active in a number of committees of the Jewish Community Council
  • Member of and active in the Exchange Network, a Winnipeg business club concerned with the growth of business in the City of Winnipeg
  • Past President of the Jewish Child & Family Services and honourary life member
  • Past officer and board member of the Winnipeg Squash & Racquet Club
  • Aide to the Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba, the Honourable Bud Jobin
  • Past member of the Executive and Board of Governors of the Canadian Friends of the Hebrew University
  • Past board member of the Winnipeg Jewish Theatre
  • Past board and executive member of the Manitoba Head Injuries Association
  • Board member of the Shaarey Zedek Synagogue since 1989, Vice-President for the 1993-95 term, President for the 1995-97 term and honourary life board member since
  • Frequent fundraiser for the United Way Campaign and many other charitable organizations over the years.