Nikki L. Charlton, K.C.

Nikki specializes exclusively in the area of family law. She was called to the bar in 2004 and became a partner at Farris in 2015. In 2024, Nikki was elected as a Bencher of the Law Society of British Columbia. She currently sits on the Discipline Committee, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Advisory Committee, and the Complainant’s Review Committee. Nikki is an accredited family law mediator, arbitrator, parenting coordinator and collaborative practitioner, but is best known for her advocacy skills. She was counsel in a leading child relocation case, Walker v. Maxwell, 2015 BCCA 282, and has helped develop the law in the areas of family law contract interpretation, evidentiary requirements in family law, support obligations and the child’s ‘best interests test’, including in the precedent-setting cases of C.D.C v. M.E.R.W., 2024 BCSC 1509, Wiebe v. Treissman, 2017 BCSC 1523 and Marthinsen v. Marthinsen, 2020 BCSC 619. Nikki’s written submissions are thoughtful and substantive and have been referenced in reported cases [eg. Marthinsen at para. 64] where the Court accepted her submissions in their entirety.

Nikki obtained her B.A. with distinction at the University of Victoria and her law degree at UBC. She has continued since then to take courses and develop cutting-edge expertise related to her practice. Nikki’s leadership in the Family Law Bar is frequently recognized. For example, in 2024, Nikki presented at the National Family Law Conference in Halifax, and her paper on the topic of screens and social media is being published in the Canadian Family Law Quarterly. Nikki has co-chaired the CLEBC Biennial Family Law Conferences since 2017. She has written numerous papers and presented at various conferences on topics such as advanced financial issues in family law, distributive tax in the valuation and division of capital property, trust and corporate issues in family law, trial advocacy, managing high conflict parents, child relocation, and the three-day intensive collaborative divorce training, where Nikki was one of two lead trainers. Nikki maintains a keen academic interest in developments in family law and often presents case comments and analyses to groups of family lawyers. In March of 2022, she served as a judge for the National Family Law Competition. In 2020, Nikki organized and co-chaired a TLABC course entitled “You Be the Judge”, where participants were provided a fact pattern and presenters argued both sides of various legal issues. In May 2022, she co-presented on the adjustment of property valuation dates for the CLEBC course “Advanced Financial Issues in Family Law”. She contributes to CLEBC’s Family Law Agreements: Annotated Precedents as an editor. She also regularly presents at meetings of the CBA Family Law Section, the Collaborative Divorce Vancouver Practice Group, and the Family Law Advocates Group, a group of senior family law practitioners who meet monthly to discuss family law issues. She is a past director of the BC Parenting Coordination Roster Society. She served for six years on the board of the British Columbia Collaborative Practice Roster Society (BCCPRS).

When not working, you can find Nikki playing her heart out on the tennis court, or managing the expectations of her two teenage daughters, Ellie and Kate.

Year of Call

2004

Legal Recognition

•The Best Lawyers in Canada (2026)
•Lexpert Leading Lawyers in Canada (2025)
•The Best Lawyers in Global Business (2022)
•Lexpert ‘Litigation Lawyer to Watch’ (2016)
•Lexpert Leading Lawyer Under 40 (2015)
•Lexpert Rising Stars Winner (2015)

In the News

Presentations

Nikki Charlton, K.C. and Isabel Romeral Speak at Her Wealth Summit

September 23, 2025

Recognition

61 Farris Lawyers Recognized in the 2026 Best Lawyers in Canada Directory

September 4, 2025

Presentations

Nikki Charlton, K.C. and Todd R. Bell Chair Family Law Conference

July 14, 2025