A. Boyd Ferris

A. Boyd Ferris (July 23, 1929 – July 31, 1989) was a Canadian lawyer practising in Vancouver, British Columbia. He served as president of the British Columbia branch of the Canadian Bar Association, and then as the national president of the CBA. He was also active in politics, being a major supporter of Pierre Trudeau in his campaign for the leadership of the Liberal Party of Canada, and in the 1968 general election.

Early life Ferris was born at Winnipeg, Manitoba, the son of Arthur Ferris and Margaret Boyd Hannah. He graduated from Daniel McIntyre Senior High School in 1948. He was active in several sports, including boxing, track and football. He played for the Winnipeg Western Wildcats, the Manitoba Bisons of the University of Manitoba, and one year as a professional with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in the Canadian Football League.

Ferris specialised in civil litigation, developing a reputation as one of the leading counsel in British Columbia. He was interested in labour and banking matters, but also appeared in a variety of civil proceedings and administrative law matters. He appeared regularly in civil jury trials, and towards the end of his career focussed on insurance law from the defence perspective. He appeared in all levels of courts, including the Supreme Court of Canada, as well as administrative tribunals. He had a reputation of quickly mastering his brief prepared by his juniors, and as an expert in cross-examination. Although he enjoyed the courtroom, he recognised that it was often better for his clients to settle a case. The resolution generated considerable controversy, as some members did not think the CBA should be taking a position on political issues, while many Quebec members thought that the resolution attempted to impose a particular view on the sovereignty issue as a condition of membership. After considerable negotiations, the resolution was amended on a motion by Yves Fortier, a past-president of the Quebec Branch, and Bryan Williams, the incoming president of the British Columbia Branch. The amendment removed some of the language explicitly supporting the federal system and rejecting separatism.

Political activity Ferris was also active in politics. He was a supporter of the Liberal Party both federally and provincially, and chaired and co-chaired a number of election campaigns. His most significant campaigns were for Pierre Trudeau. In 1967–68, Ferris chaired Trudeau's successful campaign committee for leadership of the Liberal Party of Canada. The next year, he was co-chair of the Liberal campaign committee in the general election of 1968, which resulted in the election of Trudeau as Prime Minister of Canada with a healthy majority in the House of Commons. He also had three children from a previous marriage.