Brent Handel

Lawyer and King’s Counsel

Brent Handel was appointed a Queen’s Counsel (Q.C.) on December 30, 2011, however, since the passing of Queen Elizabeth II and ascension of King Charles III, it is now called King’s Counsel or K.C.  This honorary title is intended to recognize a lawyer’s achievement and standing in the legal profession for top quality work, professional integrity, and outstanding contribution to the legal profession and to the community. Currently, there are over 10,000 active lawyers in Alberta. Of those active lawyers only 90 lawyers are chosen every two years to receive the honour of K.C.

Mr. Handel is currently on the Board of Directors of the Open Medicine Foundation Canada.  The Open Medicine Foundation Canada envisions improved health care for patients suffering from chronic complex diseases such as chronic fatigue syndrome and including, most recently, “Long Covid” a condition in which approximately 30% of Covid 19 patients are left with ongoing fatigue.  Open Medicine Foundation Canada is supporting the research at three Collaborative Research Centres at the University of Montreal, Stanford University and Harvard University, see https://omfcanada.ngo.

Mr. Handel is a past Chairman of the Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal – Disability Claims from 2006 to 2009. The Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal is a quasi-judicial tribunal which hears appeals from citizens who have been denied permanent disability benefits by the Government of Canada.

Mr. Handel is the Past President of the Central Alberta Bar Society (CABS) from 2011 to 2013. The CABS is a professional, voluntary organization whose membership comprises lawyers, judges and law students in Red Deer and the Central Alberta region.

Mr. Handel is an instructor for the Legal Education Society of Alberta, the continuing education arm of the Law Society of Alberta for Alberta Lawyers. Mr. Handel instructed numerous courses on the “New Alberta Rules of Court” seminars dealing with the fundamental revision of the civil litigation rules of procedure for Alberta lawyers.

As well, Mr, Handel has taught a university level business law course on a part-time basis to university students for many years at Red Deer College.

Brent has been married for 35 years and has three children, a daughter, Talina, who is a lawyer in Calgary, and two sons, Jordan and Christopher, who both recently graduated from Law School and are also practicing law at firms in Calgary.  The family recently added a son-in-law, Adam, who is also a lawyer in Calgary.