Ivan Henry leaves B.C. Supreme Court during a lunch break in Vancouver, B.C., on Monday August 31, 2015. A lawyer for the British Columbia government says the case of a man who was wrongfully imprisoned for nearly 30 years may have ended differently had the accused not represented himself in court.DARRYL DYCK/The Canadian Press
A Vancouver lawyer says the province of British Columbia has made an "embarrassing" argument in an effort to defend itself in a lawsuit by a man who was wrongfully imprisoned for nearly three decades.
Michael McCubbin says the province is acknowledging it screwed up by saying its failure to disclose important documents to Ivan Henry would not have made any difference because he represented himself.
Henry has sued the province, the federal government and the City of Vancouver after he was acquitted of 10 counts of sexual assault in 2010 — about 27 years after his conviction.
On Monday, government lawyer John Hunter told B.C. Supreme Court that Henry's case may have ended differently had he accepted a publicly funded lawyer.
Hunter also said Henry's lack of legal training meant the province's failure to pass along potentially damning documents would not have changed the outcome of the case.
The City of Vancouver reached a settlement with Henry last week, but Henry is still pursuing compensation from the provincial and federal governments.