Halie Bruce
Halie (Kwanxwa’logwa) Bruce is a Kwakwaka’wakw, Tlingit, and Scottish/Canadian mother, wife, lawyer, mediator, adjudicator, sometimes soccer coach and Sixties Scoop Survivor. She was called to the British Columbia Bar in 2008. Her practice areas include Aboriginal law, family law, child welfare, fisheries law, Indigenous laws and governance, and Aboriginal business law. Since 2010, Halie has also devoted part of her practice to Indigenous restorative justice initiatives, including writing Gladue Reports for Indigenous people at bail, sentencing and appeal courts in BC.

Halie attended Simon Fraser University before attaining a Bachelor of Laws degree from UBC. She has over 30 years of experience working with Indigenous communities, and Indigenous, provincial and federal governments, and businesses. She has extensive training in mediation and alternative dispute resolution through courses taken at the Continuing Legal Education Society of BC, Justice Institute of BC, and the Social Justice Mediation Institute.

Before entering the legal profession, Halie served as the Executive Director of the Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs. As the Joint Policy Council Coordinator, she advocated for Aboriginal Title and Rights and Treaty Rights, including the Rights of indigenous peoples generally and indigenous children specifically. She has extensive experience in administration, management, staff and employment issues. She has worked with Indigenous communities across B.C., Canada and internationally, to explore traditional dispute resolution mechanisms.

In 2014, Halie co-founded the law firm Cedar & Sage Law, which focuses on Indigenous laws, Alternative and Traditional Indigenous Dispute Resolution mechanisms and peacemaking protocols.

She has taught, coached and facilitated courses on Gladue Principles and Reports, Indigenous Child Welfare, and Trauma-Informed practices.  She has been a frequent speaker, panelist and Co-chair on various Indigenous issues at Continuing Legal Education BC (CLE BC), including in the areas of Gladue, Access to Justice for Children, Indigenous Child Welfare, racism and diversity. 

Halie teaches and facilitates workshops on Intercultural competency, cultural safety, Trauma-Informed interviewing, processes, and best practices. She is frequently invited to speak to Indigenous communities, Judges, Lawyers, Administrative Law Tribunals and Boards, and Social work teams on Trauma Informed Interviewing and Legal Practice issues, the Implementation of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission Calls to Action, Sixties Scoop Survivor issues, Indigenous Child Welfare Issues, S. 718.2 (e) of the Criminal Code (Gladue), Indigenous Women & Justice, and Indigenous Legal Orders.

In 2015 and 2021, Halie assisted in the research, editing and teaching of “Wrapping Our Ways Around Them:  Aboriginal Communities and the CFCSA Guidebook” (updated 2021 to include federal legislation). 

She is a former inaugural Board member of the Sixties Scoop Healing Foundation, a former Board member of the BC Aboriginal Justice Council, and participated on the Advisory Committee of the Society for Children and Youth BC’s Children’s Lawyer initiative.

Professor Sarah Morales
Sarah Morales (Su-taxwiye), JD (UVic), LLM (University of Arizona), PhD (UVic), PostDoc (Illinois) is Coast Salish and a member of Cowichan Tribes. She is an Associate Professor at the University of Victoria, Faculty of Law, where she teaches torts, transsystemic torts, Coast Salish law and languages, legal research and writing and field schools.

Prior to joining the faculty at the University of Victoria, she taught at the University of Ottawa, Faculty of Law where she taught Aboriginal law, Indigenous legal traditions and international human rights with a focus on Indigenous peoples. 

Sarah’s research centres on Indigenous legal traditions, specifically the traditions of the Coast Salish people, Aboriginal law and human rights. She has been active with Indigenous nations and NGOs across Canada in nation building, inherent rights recognition and international human rights law.