Judge orders former PPC candidate to stop calling himself an engineer
CBC
A judge has ordered a Vancouver Island candidate for the People's Party of Canada in the last federal election to stop calling himself an engineer.
David Hilderman, who ran for the PPC in the Saanich—Gulf Islands riding in 2021, has a university degree in engineering, but is not licensed as a professional engineer, according to a recent B.C. Supreme Court judgment. Engineer is a protected title in certain contexts in B.C.
Nonetheless, Hilderman introduced himself as an engineer on his campaign website, the PPC website, his Facebook page and his LinkedIn, the judgment says.
The Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of B.C. was alerted to those claims during the election campaign, launched an investigation, and then made multiple demands that Hilderman stop calling himself an engineer, according to the judgment. He refused.
Justice Jan Brongers found that because Hilderman called himself an engineer while also mentioning his degree in applied science and saying he "has worked in the electronics industry," uses his "engineering experience," and is doing "contract engineering work," he has breached the Professional Governance Act.
On Dec. 1, Brongers granted a permanent injunction preventing Hilderman from calling himself an engineer or any other title in a way that "expresses or implies" he is a registered professional engineer.
Hilderman told CBC that he has now scrubbed his online profiles to be in compliance with the court judgment, but described the regulations surrounding the word "engineer" as absurd.
"I was hoping that sanity would prevail and the judge would go, yeah, this is ridiculous," he said.
Hilderman argues that he has an engineering degree, wears an engineer's iron ring and has designed motherboards for personal computers.
"They want to take control of the word engineer, but I don't know what else I can call myself," he said.
"I use applied science. I use applied math and physics to develop products. I don't know what other word I'm supposed to use, but they say that by using the word engineer, I'm putting the public at risk. I don't get it."
On its own, the word "engineer" isn't an expressly reserved title under B.C. law. But according to the professional association, it can be misused if the context suggests that someone is a registered professional engineer.
According to Brongers' judgment, the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists first reached out to Hilderman in December 2021 and demanded he stop using the title of engineer
"You guys are hillarious! No worries! I'll stop," Hilderman wrote in an email, quoted in the judgment.
Run 3 Space | Play Space Running Game
Traffic Jam 3D | Online Racing Game
Duck Hunt | Play Old Classic Game
Global trade will be a major focus at next week's G7 summit as world leaders gather in Alberta, including U.S. President Donald Trump, who will be making his first appearance at a major international event since returning to the White House in January.
Moments after he was shot in Toronto's Weston neighbourhood Saturday night, a teenage boy lay bleeding out in front of a local health-care centre — and one witness says her repeated cries for help at the facility's front door were ignored.
A wanted fugitive accused of being the ringleader of a grandparent scam has left tenants in two southwestern Ontario cities with a host of maintenance issues and no one to turn to for help.
Conservatives and New Democrats don't agree on much, but it appears both have issues with provisions tucked into Bill C-2, the Carney government's Strong Borders Act.
About 60 kilometres away from St. Anthony, on Newfoundland's Northern Peninsula, the RCMP is involved in a major undertaking down a long dirt road in an area known as Northwest Arm.
A member of the RCMP's major crime unit says it's taking "longer than we hoped" to advance the investigation into two missing Nova Scotia children who vanished from a rural community more than five weeks ago.
The province has announced a $6.5-million bursary program for paramedic and emergency medical technician students that train in New Brunswick and commit to working in the province.
WARNING | This story contains graphic details.
In March, Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe announced his government's response to U.S. tariffs. Three months later, those measures are ending.
Even as firefighters get relief from extreme heat and harsh winds, Alberta's most dangerous wildfires are continuing to burn near communities under threat.
One year out from the FIFA World Cup, questions remain about where soccer fans visiting Vancouver will stay and how much it will cost to keep the city safe.
Toronto needs a single set of rules for bike lanes in the city, a council committee decided on Wednesday.
Living in a small and remote northern community like Old Crow, Yukon, can mean limited access to recreational activities — especially when many of the spaces meant for activities like baseball or soccer are being instead used to store industrial equipment and supplies.