The Board of Directors of West Coast Prison Justice Society is pleased to announce the appointment of Pierre Hawkins as Director of Legal Services at Prisoners’ Legal Services (PLS). In this role, Pierre will oversee the legal work of the organization, including direct legal services, legal information, and strategic litigation.
Pierre established and has led the Public Legal Counsel Program at the John Howard Society of Saskatchewan (JHSS) since 2019, following his tenure as Programs Director at Pro Bono Law Saskatchewan. He brings to PLS significant experience in legal program leadership, strategic litigation, and public policy advocacy.
As Senior Public Legal Counsel, Pierre successfully represented JHSS at the Supreme Court of Canada in John Howard Society of Saskatchewan v. Saskatchewan, a case which advanced constitutional protections across the country for people facing prison disciplinary proceedings. Pierre has also represented incarcerated people and public interest organizations before superior and appellate courts, most notably in R. v. Wilson, 2025 SCC 32; UR Pride v. Saskatchewan, 2025 SKCA 74; R. v. B.J.M., 2024 SKCA 79; and Kupsar v. Regina Provincial Correctional Centre, 2020 SKCA 142.
Pierre joins Nicole Kief, Executive Director, in co-leading the work of PLS to enforce the rights of incarcerated people and advance strategic litigation and advocacy to achieve systemic, anti-carceral change.