Stephanie John
Profile
Stephanie John is a construction lawyer with a background in civil engineering and project management. She has assisted clients at various stages of construction disputes, including the early demand and builders lien phases, through to litigation, including mediation, trial, and arbitration. Stephanie regularly assists in settlement negotiations, and has also appeared in chambers, before the Registrar, as lead counsel at trial in the British Columbia Provincial Court, as co-counsel at a private arbitration hearing, and as co-counsel at trial in the British Columbia Supreme Court. Stephanie’s engineering background, clear communication style, and dedication to understanding the story behind each file make her a strong advocate for her clients.
A significant part of Stephanie’s practice is contract drafting, including drafting supplementary conditions, as well as custom contract arrangements. Stephanie also has experience drafting and reviewing procurement documents such as requests for qualifications and requests for proposals.
In addition to practicing construction law, Stephanie maintains a practice in general commercial litigation and in administrative law. Prior to coming to JML, she worked for Engineers and Geoscientists BC, and while at JML has assisted with the prosecution of professional discipline matters for professional regulatory bodies.
Prior to entering law, Stephanie completed her undergraduate degree in civil engineering. During her civil engineering program, Stephanie worked a 15-month internship with a construction management contractor in Calgary, Alberta, where she worked on-site at two large commercial construction projects. This experience and her engineering background give her an understanding of the technical details of construction files.
In her free time, Stephanie loves being active, singing in a choir, cooking, and spending time with family and friends.
Expertise
Experience Highlights
- Kang v My Gastown Development Limited Partnership, 2023 BCSC 1200 (CanLII)
- New City Contracting Ltd. v. Super Windows Ltd., 2022 BCPC 248 (CanLII)
- Co-counsel to a general contractor in litigation against its subcontractor, defending claims for unpaid invoices and prosecuting claims for deficient work and replacement contractor costs
- Co-counsel for residential home-owners in a Supreme Court action concerning deficient construction
- Junior counsel to a large international contractor in dispute resolution and litigation to determine claims for extra costs to construct a substantial infrastructure project
- Junior counsel to a large national contracting company in an arbitration to determine claims for delays and extra costs to construct a major infrastructure project
- Co-counsel to an engineering company in successful settlement negotiations with a developer over the engineering company’s unpaid invoices
- Co-counsel for trade contractors seeking recovery of unpaid invoices, including filing builders lien claims, commencing litigation, and negotiating settlements
- Co-counsel to contractors seeking to file builders liens in complicated locations, including in respect of port, mining, and sewer works
- Co-counsel for residential general contractors, strata corporations, and home owners drafting and negotiating construction contracts
- Co-counsel in a number of professional discipline matters for Engineers and Geoscientists British Columbia and the College of Veterinarians of British Columbia
Education & Bar Admissions
- B.Sc. Civil Engineering, University of Calgary, 2016
- J.D., University of British Columbia, 2019
- Called to the Bar of British Columbia, 2020
Rankings & Recognitions
- Peter Glockner Engineering Scholarship for Excellence (University of Calgary)
- Lorraine Douglass Prize in Condominium Law (UBC)
- Young, Anderson Prize in Municipal Law (UBC)
- Giroday Family Scholarship in Law (UBC)
Memberships & Associations
- Canadian Bar Association, BC Branch
- Law Society of British Columbia
Seminars & Speaking Engagements
- “Handshakes, Unsigned Contracts, Quotations & Hopeful Promises: What makes a binding contract?” Buildex Vancouver, co-presented with David Volk, February 2024
Publications
- “But everyone does it this way; Discipline of Conduct that is Widespread in a Profession,” co-written with David Volk, presented at Infonex’s RegPro 2019 West – Professional Regulation and Discipline Conference
- Contributing author, Continuing Legal Education Society of British Columbia’s Real Estate Development Practice Manual