Mr. Prithipaul completed his undergraduate university education at the University of Alberta where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts (Honours with First Class Honours) in 1987. He studied law at Dalhousie University Law School in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and graduated in 1990. In the same year, he articled to a senior criminal defence practitioner in Edmonton and was called to the bar in Alberta in 1991. Since then, he has devoted himself exclusively to the defence of persons charged with criminal and quasi-criminal charges.
A veteran defence lawyer, Mr. Prithipaul has conducted hundreds of trials over more than two decades of practice, trials with judges alone and with juries. He is highly experienced in conducting criminal appeals to the appellate courts of Alberta, British Columbia, Northwest Territories, Saskatchewan and Manitoba. In addition, Mr. Prithipaul has argued appeals in the Supreme Court of Canada.
Mr. Prithipaul is a past president of the Criminal Trial Lawyers’ Association (2001-2003), has lectured on impaired driving and the law of evidence at legal education seminars, taught at bar admission courses, and mentored numerous students. He has been published in the Criminal Law Quarterly and Alan Gold’s Weekly Netletter online. Mr. Prithipaul is a member of the Law Societies of Alberta and Northwest Territories. Although headquartered in Edmonton, he will travel to defend his clients throughout Alberta, and has appeared as a criminal defence lawyer in British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Northwest Territories, and Manitoba.
Mr. Prithipaul is bilingual in French and English. In 1994, he interrupted his practice in Edmonton to pursue further legal studies. He studied criminal law in French in Paris, France, at the post-graduate level. In 1995, he completed a “Diplôme d’études approfondies avec mention ‘bien’” (diploma of advanced studies with honourable mention) from Université Panthéon Assas, Paris II. This program had the effect of enhancing Mr. Prithipaul’s fluency in juridical French, the language of the courts.
Mr. Prithipaul received the Queen’s Counsel (Q.C.) designation in 2012. This designation signifies that he is recognized as being “learned in the law”.
Mr. Prithipaul Q.C., since 1990, has devoted his career to representing persons charged with criminal offences. He is recognized as a dedicated and ethical professional who prides himself on his competence as an advocate for the accused. Mr. Prithipaul restricts his practice to the defense of those charged with criminal and regulatory offences at trial, on appeal, and in administrative hearings.