It was an early Christmas present for Moose Jaw's Gail Wartman.  She found out last week what the provincial government announced on Monday - she has been appointed Queen's Counsel.  She is one of fourteen Saskatchewan lawyers to receive the designation. 

"I got a phone call from the Minister Of Justice at the end of last week," Wartman told us.  "I've had that wonderful news for a few days. It's very exciting, humbling and something that I'm very pleased with." 

Queen’s Counsel appointments are based on recommendations from a selection committee consisting of Saskatchewan's Justice Minister and Attorney General, the Chief Justice of the Court of Appeal for Saskatchewan or the Chief Justice of the Court of Queen's Bench (on an alternating basis), and the past presidents of the Saskatchewan branch of the Canadian Bar Association and the Law Society of Saskatchewan.

Wartman feels her role with the Canadian Bar Association played a major part in receiving the honour. "One of the main reasons I got the Q.C. is because I'm President of the (Saskatchewan Branch of) CBA, although it's not an automatic."  Wartman has been President since September.

As for how the appointment will change what Wartman does day to day at the Macdougall Gauley office in Moose Jaw? "Not much," she admitted. "It'll be a different letterhead. In some situations it'll give you precedence to go to the head of the line if you're in provincial court, for example.  Some people get silk robes once you become a Q.C., you have an entitlement to wear a special barrister's robe.  But mostly it's just the recognition and the honour."

Wartman is originally from Elrose, SK.  She was admitted to the bar in 1980 and articled for Legal Aid in Alameda for a few years, before moving to Regina in the late 1980s.  She worked for private firms and for the city of Regina for about twenty years, before taking over the Macdougall Gauley office in Moose Jaw in 2008.

"I love Moose Jaw, " Wartman says.  "It's a really warm community.  I find the flavour of the place to be different than Regina.  This is a different pace.  It has all the amenities you would look for in a city but has much more of a hometown feel to it."

The other 2014 Queen’s Counsel appointments are:

  • Brent Barilla, a lawyer with the Scharfstein Gibbings Walen Fisher law firm in Saskatoon.  He was admitted to the bar in 1990.
  • Barry Bridges, a lawyer with the McDougall Gauley law firm in Estevan.  He was admitted to the bar in 1974.
  • Linda Christensen, Senior Crown Counsel in the Civil Law Division, Saskatchewan Ministry of Justice.  She was admitted to the bar in 1992.
  • Colin Clackson, a lawyer with the Wallace Meschishnick Clackson Zawada law firm in Saskatoon.  He was admitted to the bar in 1987.
  • Mary Donlevy-Konkin, Chief of Staff to the Minister of Justice and Attorney General.  She was admitted to the bar in Alberta in 1986 and in Saskatchewan in 1996.
  • Conrad Hadubiak, Chief Legal Officer of the Brandt Group of Companies in Regina.  He was admitted to the bar in 1990.
  • James Kerby, a lawyer with the MacPherson Leslie & Tyerman law firm in Saskatoon.  He was admitted to the bar in 1985.
  • Douglas Kosloski, Senior Vice President and General Counsel for the Crown Investments Corporation of Saskatchewan.  He was admitted to the bar in 1994.
  • Deron Kuski, a lawyer with the MacPherson Leslie & Tyerman law firm in Regina.  He was admitted to the bar in 1998.
  • Diana Lee, a lawyer with the Kanuka Thuringer law firm in Regina.  She was admitted to the bar in 1982.
  • Patricia Quaroni, a lawyer with the Olive Waller Zinkhan & Waller law firm in Regina.  She was admitted to the bar in 1988.
  • W. Dean Sinclair, Director of Appeals in the Public Prosecutions Division, Saskatchewan Ministry of Justice.  He was admitted to the bar in 1981.
  • David Stack, a lawyer with the McKercher law firm in Saskatoon.  He was admitted to the bar in 2000.


Individuals must live in Saskatchewan and must have practiced law for at least ten years in the superior courts of any province or territory of Canada, the United Kingdom or Ireland.