Cheri Eklund
Associate Counsel
Cheri Eklund is a seasoned barrister with over 25 years of professional experience, holding an LLM from the London School of Economics, an LLB/JD cum laude from the University of Ottawa (French Common Law Program), and a BA in French from the University of Calgary, where she studied both in Paris and Calgary.
Cheri began her legal career in 1994 and completed an internship at the International Court of Arbitration of the ICC in Paris in 1995 before returning to practice as defense counsel in British Columbia, where she represented clients in both judge-alone and jury trials in BC Supreme Court. In 2007, she accepted a position as RCMP Member Representative and defense counsel, appearing before administrative tribunals across Canada for 12 years. She later served as a full-time Grievance Adjudicator, where she rendered binding decisions in both French and English. In 2014, Cheri returned to defense counsel work with a major insurance company, and she is proud to be part of the legal team at Up Legal Group.
Committed to community service, Cheri has served on the Board of Directors for the Financial Planners Standards Council, the ADR Institute of Canada as BC Representative, and most recently on the Board of Directors for the North Shore Connextions Society, which supports individuals with intellectual disabilities.
An active member of the London School of Economics alumni network, Cheri maintains close ties with her international peers and has a particular interest in international data privacy, media law, and defamation. Locally, she is a member of the Terminal City Club, and in her free time, she enjoys exploring the natural beauty of Howe Sound and the Sunshine Coast through nature hikes.