The Honourable P. Mitchell Murphy, Minister of Community Affairs and Attorney General, announced today that at its meeting of December 30, 1997, Executive Council appointed the following lawyers as Queen's Counsel: David W. Hooley of Charlottetown, Shawn A. Murphy of Charlottetown, Beverly Mills Stetson of Charlottetown, and J. Kenneth Clark of Summerside.
David W. Hooley is a partner in the law firm of Patterson Palmer Hunt Murphy and has practiced law since 1975. Mr. Hooley is a Past President of the P.E. I. Branch of the Canadian Bar Association and also a Past National Chairperson of the Canadian Young Lawyers Division of the Canadian Bar Association.
Shawn A. Murphy is a partner in the law firm of Stewart McKelvey Stirling Scales and has practiced law since 1977. Mr. Murphy is a Past President of the Law Society of P.E.I.
Beverly Mills Stetson was admitted to the Bar in 1981 and practiced law for four years in Charlottetown. She was Executive Director of the Community Legal Information Association from 1984 to 1988. Since 1988 she has been the Secretary-Treasurer and Executive Director of the Law Society of Prince Edward Island where she is responsible for managing the programs and activities of the Society. Ms. Stetson is actively involved with the Federation of Law Societies.
J. Kenneth Clark is a partner in the law firm of Ramsay & Clark. He was admitted to the Bar in 1979 and is currently a member of the Council of the Law Society.
The recommendation for appointment of Queen's Counsel is made to the Lieutenant Governor in Council by a Committee composed of the President of the Law Society, a member of the Law Society appointed by the Council of the Law Society, a person appointed by the Attorney General, a Justice of the Supreme Court, and a Judge of the Provincial Court. To be nominated by the Committee, the nominee must have been a member of the Law Society for a period of at least ten years.
The appointment of a Queen's Counsel recognizes the ability and dedication to the legal profession of the appointee and permits the use of the letters "Q.C." after the lawyer's name.