Herbert S. Silber - Partner
hsilber@kmslawyers.com
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604.331.8313

Herb Silber is best known to the Canadian legal and business community for his 30 plus years as a highly successful litigator. What may be less well known is that during the past number of years he has increasingly taken on the role of Arbitrator in commercial disputes and as counsel in the British Columbia Court of Appeal. Herbert has also added a focus as Mediator.

Arbitration
Herb is an accredited Arbitrator with the British Columbia International Commercial Arbitration Centre. His arbitration experience extends to the role of Counsel and Arbitrator. As Arbitrator, he has the demonstrable ability to manage, control and change the proceedings as appropriate and to encourage, when required, and participate in, principled negotiations and mediation. The price paid for an unresolved commercial dispute is not only measured financially, but also often in the emotional toll it takes and the loss of productivity. An effective arbitration should allow the parties to solve their conflicts in a less expensive manner than a court proceeding, and more promptly, so that they can move on with their business.

Mediation
Herb is a graduate of an intense five-day Mediation Workshop organized under the auspices of Harvard University School of Negotiation. Herb received accolades for his performance as Mediator during simulated programs.

Court of Appeal
Herb draws on three decades of experience with clients and case law to identify the strongest possible grounds for appeal – and will not retreat from counseling clients if their appeal lacks sufficient merit not to continue. His ability to understand the issues, quickly assimilate the facts and develop strong compelling arguments ensures that the appeal judges are engaged and informed. Herb regularly appears in both the Supreme Court and British Columbia Court of Appeal.

Litigation
Herb's extensive career in litigation has been focussed largely on real estate litigation, lease arbitration and employment law. He was co-counsel on one of the largest commercial fraud cases in Canadian history, which included precedent-setting decisions on directors' liability. Herb's securities and corporate litigation experience also includes shareholder oppression actions, proxy fights and fraud claims. His successes in this area have resulted in decisions that have influenced corporate law and damage recovery principles. Herb's employment law practice includes appearances as counsel in numerous wrongful dismissal trials and appeals, negotiations for severance packages and advising on group terminations.

After receiving a B.A. from the University of British Columbia in 1968, Herb obtained his law degree from Osgoode Hall in Toronto in 1971. He then joined Freeman & Company, becoming one of that firm's Senior Litigation Partners until its dissolution in 1993, when he formed his own firm, Silber Weintraub. For the past 12 years Herb has been a partner with Kornfeld Mack off Silber LLP.

Herb has been, and continues to be, very active in several community organizations. He served for many years as Honourary Counsel for the Canadian Jewish Congress, Pacific Region and as an Officer and member of its National Executive. He is the past President of the Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver. Herb was honoured in June of 2008 as the Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver's Man of the Year. As well Herb is on the Board of the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver, which in 2009 raised over 7.5 million dollars to support various community and educational causes. Herb and his wife Barbara have three grown children, Michael, Arin (A.J.) and Tara.