Duan J. Ash

Duan is an Associate and member of both the Real Estate and Wills, Estates and Trusts teams. Duan strives to provide excellent service to his clients and understands that client relationships are built and centred on trust, loyalty, professionalism, and being genuine.

Duan is currently a member of the Nova Scotia Barristers’ Society and serves on various committees and boards. He is a Committee member for the Black Lives Matter Golf Initiative and a Board Member for Basketball Nova Scotia, and also sits on their Governance Committee, which is a sub-committee for Basketball Nova, along with being the head coach for Auburn Drive High School’s Women’s Basketball Team. Duan is also a former board member for the Nova Scotia Golf Association, a former member of the Nova Scotia Golf Association’s Finance Committee, and former Chair for the Nova Scotia Golf Association’s Diversity & Inclusion Committee He is also a former Dalhousie Advisory and Standing Committee Member (Indigenous Blacks & Mi’kmaq Initiative Representative) and a former Executive Member for the Dalhousie Black Law Society Association.

Duan is passionate about giving back to his community and other communities. While he was an undergraduate student at Mount Saint Vincent University, he volunteered his time outside of his studies and varsity athletic commitments (Men’s Basketball) as a sales representative for a clothing line based out of Toronto called “Tenfed,” whose overall mission is to feed children of hunger both in Canada and around the world. Throughout law school, he volunteered and helped with fundraising for both the Dalhousie Black Law Society Association (DBLSA) and the Dalhousie Indigenous Law Society Association (DILSA) to raise money for the associations’ community outreach initiatives. Duan is currently co-leading a new Black Lives Matter Golf Initiative with the help of his committee to help promote and break social and economic barriers for underrepresented Black, Indigenous and People of Colour (BIPOC) youth and women to provide a more inclusive environment for the game of golf. Black Lives Matter Golf was recently named Community Sport Organizations of the Year at the 2022 Support4Sport Awards.

Outside of the office, Duan loves to golf, play basketball and soccer, listen to music (R&B, Hip-Hop, Smooth Jazz) and read.

Background

Education

2020: JD, Schulich School of Law, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia
2017: Bachelor of Business Administration (Double Major in Marketing and Management), Mount Saint Vincent University, Halifax, Nova Scotia

Employment

• 2021 – Present: Associate, BOYNECLARKE LLP, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia
• 2020 – 2021: Articled Clerk, BOYNECLARKE LLP, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia
• 2019: Summer Student with BOYNECLARKE LLP, Immigration Services Association of Nova Scotia, Halifax, Nova Scotia
• 2017-2018: Summer Facilities Clerk, Stewart McKelvey, Halifax, Nova Scotia

Professional Memberships

• Member – Nova Scotia Barristers’ Society
• Member – Canadian Bar Association
• Member – Real Estate Lawyers Association of Nova Scotia
• Member – Brookfield Global Relocation Services
• Member – BOYNECLARKE LLP Articling Committee
• Former Executive Member – Dalhousie Black Law Society Association
• Former Member – Dalhousie Indigenous Law Society Association
• Former Member – Dalhousie Advisory and Standing Committee, Indigenous Blacks & Mi’kmaq Representative

Community Activities

• Assistant Coach – Basketball Nova Scotia U15 Women’s Basketball Team (2024)
• Mentor – Mentorship Program with Schulich School of Law, Dalhousie University
• Head Coach – Auburn Drive High School Women’s Basketball Team
• Board Member – Basketball Nova Scotia
• Member – Black Lives Matter Golf (2022 Support4Sport Community Sports Organization of the Year)
• Member – Basketball Nova Scotia Discipline Panel
• Former Board Director – Nova Scotia Golf Association
• Former Chair – Nova Scotia Golf Association Diversity & Inclusion Committee
• Former Member – Nova Scotia Golf Association’s Finance Committee
• Former Member – Nova Scotia Golf Association (NSGA) First Tee Committee

Awards and Honours

• The Outstanding Service Award, Sport Nova Scotia, Awarded for coaching girls’ basketball at Auburn Drive High School (2023)
• The Rudy Scholarship (2012)
• Tim Horton Scholarship (2012)
• New Brunswick Teachers Association Scholarship (2012)
• San Phillipo Scholarship (2012)
• Alumni Scholarship Award (2012)