Hearing Women’s Voices: AB v Henry

Speakers: Emma Cunliffe, Kevin Gourlay, Irina Kordic

Hosts: Sarah Yercich & Margaret Jackson / FREDA at Simon Fraser University

Webinar Description:

In the BC Supreme Court decision of AB v Henry, 2025 BCSC 137, Madam Justice Gropper confirmed what five sexual assault victims have said for over four decades: that Ivan Henry was the man who sexually assaulted them at knifepoint in Vancouver in the early 1980s. Justice Gropper found that “each plaintiff has met her burden: to establish that Mr. Henry is the man who attacked her, on the balance of probabilities.” She awarded damages to each of them. This was a remarkable finding in an extraordinary case. Ivan Henry was convicted of numerous charges of rape, attempted rape and indecent assault against eight women in 1983 and spent almost 27 years in prison before the BC Court of Appeal determined in 2010 that he had been wrongly convicted, acquitting him on all counts. In a subsequent civil action brought by Henry against various levels of government, he received Charter damages of more than $8 million for the prosecution’s failure to disclose information to him.

When the Henry case was re-opened in the 2000s, the victims were left voiceless. During the special prosecutor's review, Henry's appeal, and Henry's civil suit against government, the sexual assault victims were left with little support and without an opportunity to be heard. They were bystanders as a powerful public narrative grew that Henry was an innocent victim of government misconduct, along the lines of David Milgaard.

The five plaintiffs commenced their civil action against Henry to challenge the public narrative of Henry as an innocent man and to draw attention to the legal system’s failure to give victims the support they needed in these extraordinary circumstances.

In this conversation, the lawyers who represented the women plaintiffs in their civil case against Henry will reflect with Professor Emma Cunliffe on what we can learn about the Canadian legal system, the progress of women’s rights to the equal protection and benefit of the law, and truth telling, from the extraordinary course of the Henry case.

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Speakers/Panelists: 

Dr Emma Cunliffe is a professor at the Peter A Allard School of Law and principal of Green College (an interdisciplinary academic programming space and graduate residence at UBC). She previously served as the director of research and policy for the joint Federal-Nova Scotia Mass Casualty Commission (2020 – 2023). Her research explores the perpetuation of misogyny and other forms of bias through legal fact-finding, particularly in cases involving gender-based and sexual violence and those in which women are accused of violence. She publishes and teaches on a variety of topics, including expert evidence, myths and stereotypes, adversarial legal culture, and the ethical responsibilities of lawyers.

Kevin Gourlay is a partner at Murphy Battista Lawyers. He was called to the bar in 2008 and has practised civil litigation in Vancouver since that time. Along with his colleague Irina Kordic, he was lead counsel for the plaintiffs in A.B. v. Henry, 2025 BCSC 137, where they acted on behalf of five women sexually assaulted at knifepoint in 1981-1982. He is a father of three and spends his time outside of work coaching on soccer fields and baseball diamonds.

Irina Kordic is the managing partner at Murphy Battista Lawyers. She has been with the firm since her call in 2007 and practices in various areas of civil litigation. She and Kevin Gourlay were lead counsel for the plaintiffs in A.B. v. Henry, 2025 BCSC 137, where they acted on behalf of five women sexually assaulted at knifepoint in 1981-1982. Irina enjoys spending time with her husband and three children and they travel whenever possible.