Michael Manhas
Partner
Norton Rose Fulbright Canada LLP
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Biography
Michael Manhas is a litigation, administrative law, and regulatory lawyer. He focuses on matters relating to the environment, energy, natural resources, economic regulation, and Indigenous law. Michael regularly represents clients before courts in British Columbia and Alberta, and has extensive experience in administrative proceedings before tribunals, including the British Columbia and Alberta Utilities Commissions, the Environmental Appeal Board, the National Energy Board, the Forest Appeals Commission, the Canadian Transportation Agency, and the British Columbia Ferries Commission.
Michael is an experienced trial lawyer, representing industrial clients in complex and high-stakes environmental and Indigenous litigation. He has experience with contaminated sites litigation, defending environmental tort claims, representing accused individuals and corporations in the defence of regulatory prosecutions, and judicial review. Michael's tribunal advocacy experience includes defending environmental permits, challenging administrative orders, and representing clients in market design, rates, and cost of capital proceedings in the electricity, oil and gas, and transportation sectors.
Michael regularly advises clients on regulatory investigations, permitting and permit compliance issues, and transactional liability risks. He also has significant experience advising public bodies on division of powers issues, and assists clients with forestry, competition, telecommunications and expropriation issues.
Professional experience
Collapse allJ.D., University of British Columbia, 2012
M.B.A., Vancouver Island University, 2008
B.Sc., University of British Columbia, 2007
- British Columbia 2013
Michael has acted in the following matters:
- Multinational metals and mining corporation – in a trial of the first Canadian environmental tort claim grounded in Indigenous rights, relating to the operation of a hydroelectric facility; in multiple permit defences relating to a $5 billion smelter expansion.
- Major Canadian port – in defence of provincial regulatory charges where the major issues concerned the scope of provincial regulatory authority over federal agents.
- Electricity customer group – in a successful challenge to a utility's application for approval of $1.2 billion in IT services contracts.
- Best Lawyers in Canada: Aboriginal Law / Indigenous Practice, Environmental Law, 2024-2025; Energy Regulatory Law, 2025
- The Legal 500 Canada: Environment (Next Generation Partners), 2020-2024
- Thomson Reuters Stand-out Lawyers, 2022
- Acritas Stars 2020, 2021 – Designated as an "Independently rated lawyer"
News
Insights
BC Supreme Court upholds temporary “freeze” on cryptocurrency interconnections
Blog | February 14, 2024
Supreme Court of Canada did stop, will stop expanding federal jurisdiction
Publication | October 13, 2023
Federal government releases draft Clean Electricity Regulations
Publication | August 10, 2023