ST. JOHN'S, N.L. — St. John's private practice lawyer Mike King has been appointed as the director of the province's new Serious Incident Response Team (SIRT).
The news was announced by Minister of Justice and Public Safety and Attorney General Andrew Parsons at Confederation building this morning.
King, who will start a five-year-term starting at the end of September, will be responsible for establishing an independent team that "will investigate all matters involving death, serious injury, sexual offence, and domestic violence as well as other matters of significant public interest that involve police.
A news release from the provincial government suggests that the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary and Royal Canadian Mounted Police support the creation of a provincial SIRT.
"This provincial team will provide a high level of transparency and accountability to ensure the public’s confidence in the administration of justice," Parsons stated in the release.
After completing his undergraduate in English at Memorial University in 2000, King attended law school at the University of New Brunswick, graduating in 2003, after which he articled with public prosecutions until he was called to the bar in 2004.
Since that time, he has worked in private practice, most recently with Sullivan Breen King (formerly Simmonds and Partners Defence) in January 2013. His practice has mainly focused on criminal defence and has included some prosecution work.
King was Chair of the Criminal Justice Section of the Canadian Bar Association — Newfoundland and Labrador Branch from 2012 to 2017. He has been an instructor at the Newfoundland and Labrador Bar Admission Course since 2017.
He was selected for inclusion in the 2019 Edition of The Best Lawyers in Canada for his work in criminal defence; one of only four lawyers listed for criminal defence in Newfoundland and Labrador.
