Executive Director, General Counsel, Christian Legal Fellowship
Derek B.M. Ross, LL.B. (Western), LL.M. (Toronto), is the Executive Director & General Counsel for Christian Legal Fellowship, where he oversees all aspects of the organization's operations, education and training programs, publications, and advocacy. He maintains a litigation practice with a focus on human rights and religious freedom, and has acted as lead or co-counsel for public interest interveners in 13 cases involving the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, including 5 before the Supreme Court of Canada. He has appeared before every level of court in Ontario, as well as the Courts of Appeal in British Columbia and Nova Scotia. He has also appeared before numerous legislative and Parliamentary committees to present submissions on constitutional and legal issues.
Mr. Ross previously served as Director of Legal Affairs for the Canadian Council of Christian Charities, Canada's largest association of religious organizations, where he served on the Canada Revenue Agency's Technical Issues Working Group and as the general editor of the Charities Handbook, 19th Edition (2014), a comprehensive legal guide for Canadian charities. Prior to that, he practiced civil litigation with a focus on public, education, and municipal law.
Mr. Ross has served as an Executive Member of the Charity and Not-for-Profit Law sections and the Constitutional, Civil Liberties, and Human Rights Law sections of both the Canadian Bar Association and the Ontario Bar Association. He regularly presents at legal conferences and law faculties on constitutional and charity law. He is editor-in-chief of the Christian Legal Journal, a quarterly periodical examining the relationship between law and religion. His writings have appeared in numerous publications, including Policy Options, Lawyer's Weekly, Canadian Lawyer, Montreal Gazette, Public Discourse, and the Chronicle-Herald. His work has been cited in the Senate of Canada and several Parliamentary reports. He is the general editor of a forthcoming special edition of the Supreme Court Law Review (2018).
Mr. Ross spent his formative years growing up in Port Hedland, Australia, surrounded by the rugged beauty of the Pilbara Outback, and considers himself a Quasi-Aussie (he can still speak fluent Australian, if you ask him). As much as he loves his second Aussie home, he couldn’t be prouder to be a Canadian (and a Canadiens fan).
Of Counsel, Wimberly, Lawson, Steckel, Schneider & Stine P.C.
Elizabeth K. (Betsy) Dorminey is of counsel with the firm. She received a B.A. magna cum laude from the University of Georgia in 1976, a license ès lettres from the Sorbonne in 1978, a J.D. from UGA’s Law School in 1981, and an LL.M. from Columbia in 1984. She clerked for the Hon. Ed Carnes on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit and worked for the U.S. Departments of Justice and Commerce prior to joining the firm. Ms. Dorminey is a member of the State Bars of Georgia, Connecticut, and New York, and is admitted to practice in Federal District and Appellate Courts throughout the Southeast. With Larry Stine and Mark Waschak, she is co-author of “Occupational Safety & Health Law: Compliance and Practice” (Thomson/West 2008). Her practice concentrates in all aspects of employer defense, including but not limited to litigation the Fair Labor Standards Act, Title VII employment discrimination, and occupational safety and health. She is a member of the Executive Committee of the Labor & Employment Practice Group of the Federalist Society, and serves on the Board of the Friends of the Georgia Museum of Art.
Litigation Update: Trinity Western University v. Law Society of Upper Canada
Derek Ross
Trinity Western University (“TWU”) is a private institution organized around a specific viewpoint: evangelical Christianity. ...
Veiled Meaning: Tolerance and Prohibition of the Hijab in the U.S. and France
Elizabeth K. Dorminey
Introduction France and the U.S. have much in common. Both nations share a commitment to...