Tyler Severson
Tyler Severson is a summer student in Gowling WLG's Vancouver office. He currently is attending the Peter A. Allard School of Law at the University of British Columbia.
This year, Tyler participated in the Criminal Clinic, acting as defence counsel for two separate clients who were alleged to have committed offences under the Federal Contraventions Act. He also took on a file with the Criminal Code s.684 project, assisting a prisoner whose acquittal was overturned by the Supreme Court of Canada with his sentencing appeal. Tyler drafted the written submissions for a court-appointed lawyer, and the application was successful at the BC Court of Appeal. Chris was also fortunate enough to accept a clerkship with the Provincial Court of Alberta in Calgary for his articling year of 2023-2024.
During his first year of law school, Tyler gained practical experience by volunteering as a clinician with the Law Students Legal Advice Program (LSLAP), assisting low-income clients in the Lower Mainland region with their legal issues. He received the Graduating Class of Law 1967 Award for demonstrating academic achievement, athletic achievement and contributions to the university and community, as well as the Allan McEachern Prize in Criminal Law for high standing in first year criminal law.
Prior to law school, Tyler studied at the University of Victoria, majoring in political science. He was awarded multiple scholarships during his undergraduate years, including the President's Scholarship for outstanding academic achievement and the Walter D. Young Book Prize for high standing in Political Science courses. He also played for the University of Victoria Men's hockey team during his undergrad and achieved the British Columbia Intercollegiate Hockey League Academic Excellence Award all three years.
Tyler is excited to return to Gowling WLG again this summer having had an excellent experience working in the Calgary office last year. He is passionate about becoming a lawyer because the profession fosters the traits of hard work, creativity and interpersonal skills. His goal as a summer student is to continue building those skills and incorporating feedback from the professionals as much as possible, and hopefully winning a VBA softball league championship.