Meet The Team

Molly Shamess (she/her) defends adults and youths against all types of criminal charges, from the most serious offences like murder, kidnapping, sexual assault, and drug trafficking, to charges like theft, assault, and mischief. She has appeared before the Provincial Court, Supreme Court, and Court of Appeal for British Columbia, as well as before various professional regulatory tribunals and at BC Review Board hearings for clients found not criminally responsible on account of a mental disorder.

She has a special interest in Charter litigation challenging police violations of her clients’ civil liberties in the search or arrest process, as well as in representing young people, clients with mental health issues, and members of marginalised or vulnerable groups that are over represented in the criminal court system.

Molly firmly believes in her clients’ rights to be presumed innocent, to have a fair trial, and to hold the state to account. She also believes her clients deserve to have their voices heard, and to have someone standing by their side as they navigate the system. She understands that nobody hires a criminal defence lawyer because something good has happened, and she works closely with her clients to make sure they understand the situation, the process, and all of their options.

Molly completed her articles at Stern Shapray Criminal Lawyers and was called to the bar in 2015. She practised criminal defence law as a sole practitioner before returning to the firm full time in early 2017.

Before that, she earned her law degree from the University of British Columbia and a First-Class Honours Bachelor of Arts in History from McGill University. While at UBC, she worked at the Innocence Project assisting people who claim they have been wrongfully convicted. She also worked and volunteered at Nidus Personal Planning Resource Centre & Registry researching and authoring materials for public legal education, and placed second in a national trial advocacy competition.

Outside of court, Molly is Surrey’s Regional Representative for the Criminal Defence Advocacy Society (CDAS). She has lectured on Charter applications for unreasonable delay at the Trial Lawyers Association of British Columbia, provided media commentary on Charter rights and the bail process, and was a subject matter expert for the most recent edition of the BC Civil Liberties Association’s Arrest Handbook: A Guide to Your Rights.