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A North Shore leader in the fields of law, business and health care has been named to the Order of B.C.
Susan Paish of North Vancouver has been recognized for her achievements across four decades of her career, becoming one of 14 people recently granted the province’s highest honour for their outstanding provincial, national or international contributions.
During Paish’s law career at Russell DuMoulin (now Fasken), she became a leader in the development of human-rights protections and co-led the first dedicated human-rights practice in a major Canadian law firm. She was also one of the first women in Canada to become a managing partner of a major law firm and the youngest in B.C.
She received the prestigious Queen’s Counsel (now King’s Counsel) designation in 2001.
Paish is also being recognized as a trailblazer for women in the corporate world.
Paish was the fourth woman to chair the Vancouver Board of Trade in 122 years, co-founding the Board of Trade’s Women’s Leadership Circle and spearheading numerous programs for women.
She was also chair of the Business Council of B.C. and the sole female director on various corporate boards
In the field of health, Paish was the first female CEO of Pharmasave, introducing technologies such as accessing medication information online. In 2012, she became the first female CEO of LifeLabs.
In 2018, Paish became the first CEO of Canada’s Digital Technology Supercluster, dedicated to bringing together private and public-sector organizations to solve some of society’s biggest problems with Canadian-made technologies.
Paish joins fellow 2023 honorees including Deadpool star Ryan Reynolds, who was awarded for his charitable and philanthropic work, Susan Giles and Evanna Brennan, longtime outreach nurses working in Vancouver’s Downtown East Side, music talent scout Sam Feldman and conservationist George Riefel.
“As representative of the Crown in British Columbia and as chancellor of the Order of British Columbia, I am honoured to welcome these 14 members,” said Janet Austin, lieutenant governor of British Columbia. “This honour is a mark of excellence, reflected in the service and achievements of these incredible British Columbians. Their accomplishments have left an indelible mark on their communities, and ensuing legacies will impact our province to the benefit of future generations.”
B.C. Premier David Eby described the honourees as “superheroes.”
