Originally from Nova Scotia, Joseph graduated from Queen’s University with a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in philosophy (Dean’s list) before attending law school at the University of Victoria.
Joseph is a strong advocate for his clients, allowing them to focus on their recovery. He helps his clients understand the legal system and their case so they can make informed and confident decisions. He ensures his clients receive reasoned recommendations on the best course of action at every step. He has a particular interest in cases involving concussions and moderate to severe brain injuries. He regularly handles some of the firm’s most complicated claims, including claims with challenging liability scenarios.
Before joining Preszler Injury Lawyers, Joseph practiced with two prominent litigation firms in Vancouver, British Columbia. He has also worked for the Office of the Ombudsperson, the Residential Tenancy Branch, the Ministry of Attorney General, and a legal clinic that provides free legal representation to people with low incomes.
Joseph has considerable court experience. He has conducted and won numerous trials (with both a judge alone and a judge and jury) and regularly appears in court. Joseph was counsel at trial and on appeal in R. v. Nwanebu, 2014 BCCA 387, a precedent-setting case in Canada on the defence of necessity. He was also co-counsel at trial in Dickinson v. Jeffs, a personal injury case where the jury awarded his client $1.4 million in damages. Other decisions include Pisani v. Pearce, 2012 BCSC 1118; Turner v. Dos Santos, 2012 BCSC 1382; and Amini v. Khania, 2014 BCSC 1671. He attended the Supreme Court of Canada on Saadati v. Moorhead, a case concerning the scope and threshold of compensable psychological injuries. More information on the Saadati decision can be found here: https://www.preszlerlaw.com/blog/saadati-v-moorhead/. In 2021, he attended a trial on behalf of a client with chronic pain — partway through the trial, the insurance company offered more than $1M above their pre-trial settlement offer (which was also more than Joseph’s client offered to settle for before the trial began). In Lee v. MacLean, 2022 BCSC 312, he recovered $2.87M for his client in trial.*
Joseph focuses a significant portion of his practice on assisting survivors of sexual assault (primarily people abused as children) and assists in managing the firm’s national practice in this area.
Joseph has secured some of Preszler Injury Lawyers’ highest settlements in the firm’s history in both Ontario and British Columbia.
Joseph also assists in managing the British Columbia and Alberta firms.
Joseph previously wrote for Reasonable Doubt, a legal column that appeared in NOW Magazine and The Georgia Straight. He has contributed to CTV’s expert hour on personal injury topics and has appeared on CBC discussing a variety of legal topics. He contributes to continuing legal education seminars for lawyers and paralegals and offers pro bono legal services to young people from foster care.
Outside of the office, Joseph enjoys canoeing and spending time with his wife and two sons.
