Kristen practices primarily in the area of civil litigation, including family law, estate litigation, contract disputes, and other matters.
In her extensive family law practice, she endeavours to help clients obtain fair results in the most cost-effective way possible, whether by negotiating and drafting separation agreements, or by advocating for clients in court when matters such as child custody, parenting time, child support, spousal support or property division cannot otherwise be settled fairly. Kristen has represented clients at the B.C. Supreme Court, B.C. Provincial Court, Ontario Provincial Court, Ontario Superior Court, and in various tribunals and mediations. She has also been published in legal journals, national newspapers and law blogs on environmental and natural resource law developments.
Kristen also has a niche practice in the area of mountain bike and recreational risk management. By combining her personal injury law experience and her extensive experience in the mountain bike industry, Kristen can offer a unique perspective and advice in helping businesses to establish due diligence and limit liability through effective risk management protocols.
Kristen grew up in rural Ontario before moving to Ottawa to complete a Bachelor of Humanities at Carleton University, where she received the Senate Medal for Outstanding Academic Achievement. She then obtained her law degree at the University of Toronto, where she was awarded the Arthur and Sonia Labatt Fellowship and the Fogler Rubinoff Prize in Municipal and Planning Law. Kristen was called to the bar in Ontario in 2009 and in British Columbia in 2011.
Kristen then worked for the Parliament of Canada, providing legal analysis to M.P.s and senators, and then for Saxe Law Office as a contract lawyer while she pursued her other part-time career as a downhill mountain bike racer, racing in national and international events across North America.
After many years visiting and living part-time in the Sea to Sky, Kristen was very excited to finally call Squamish home again when she joined Toews & Co. in 2015. When not at the office, she can usually be found skiing, mountain biking, or honing her negotiation skills with the most formidable of opponents: her 2-year-old son. Kristen is a member of the Alpine Club of Canada, the Canadian Bar Association, and the Women’s Legal Education and Action Fund, and a former board member of SORCA.