Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I'm going to go first, and then my colleague, Ms. Richer, is going to speak, and then I'm going to finish off, if that's okay.
Tansi, everyone.
My name is Brock Roe. I'm an associate lawyer at the law firm of MacPherson Leslie and Tyerman, or MLT for short. I work out of the Edmonton, Alberta office, although I live in Saanich, B.C., just outside of Victoria, and I commute as required.
At MLT I work in a number of different practice areas. I mainly work with our partners in our aboriginal practice to support our clients in issues relating to band governance, corporate commercial economic development matters, business transactions, resource and regulatory matters, and consultation matters between first nations, resource sectors, and governments. I also support our partners with our non-aboriginal group of clients.
It's basically a general commercial practice that deals with everything: corporate law, corporate governance, commercial financing, business acquisitions and sales, and acting for non-profit societies. In other words, I'm a generalist, if you want to put it that way.
I have also had some experience working on a few estate matters on reserve for first nations ordinarily resident on reserve. I also have a little bit of experience working with regular estate matters off reserve for Albertans.
I'm also a member of the Bigstone Cree Nation, located in central northwestern Alberta. I grew up in Fort St. John, in northeastern B.C., so I have come to a unique off-reserve experience growing up, but being in close ties to my family on reserve.
I'm also a director and treasurer with the Indigenous Bar Association in Canada, also known as the IBA.
I want to be clear with the committee that my views expressed today are not reflective of the views of MLT or Treaty 8 or Bigstone, but these are the views of the IBA.