ROBERT BASSETT

Program Facilitator - Siksika First Nation

Rob is a member of the Alberta Bar (2000) and the British Columbia Bar (2005). He is a career Crown Prosecutor with Alberta Justice and Solicitor General in Calgary, specializing in domestic violence, early case resolution and youth criminal justice. Rob also trained with, and was seconded to for three years, the Alberta Public Service Commission as an Indigenous Awareness co-facilitator and trainer, proudly partnering as an ally with Indigenous colleagues, Elders and Knowledge Keepers. For several years, Rob has also been volunteering as Calgary Program Leader and Lead Instructor for Level Justice, a Canadian charitable organization for Indigenous youth outreach and justice education. In 2023, Rob was honoured to begin his new assignment of prosecuting in Calgary Indigenous Court.

While studying at UCalgary Law, Rob co-chaired the CBA Alberta Law Students Section (South) for three years. During articling, he was a member of the CBA Alberta Public Education Committee, with a mandate to improve education and access for self-represented litigants in the Provincial Court Civil Division. Rob next co-chaired the CBA Alberta Criminal Justice Section (South) with an emphasis on continuing education and membership retention. He was later elected to the CBA Alberta Council for three years, with a focus on developing a new governance framework. More recently, Rob co-chaired the CBA Alberta Access to Justice Committee and sat on the My Justice Skills Working Group, advancing public understanding of the judicial system through branch initiatives and early legal education in Alberta schools, respectively.

Rob has held faculty positions at UCalgary Law and SAIT, as a sessional instructor in clinical theory and trial advocacy, as well as criminal law, respectively. He is also the Board Chair and a long-term volunteer at Student Legal Assistance at UCalgary Law, and was recently appointed as an inaugural member of the Dean's Community Council. Rob is also an appointed Program Advisory Committee Member at SAIT, for a three year term. Rob was a volunteer adjudicator of Interviewing, Negotiating and Advocacy with CPLED for several years; and is a guest speaker for CBA Alberta, UCalgary Law and LESA on prosecutions and ethics. Rob is a passionate mentor to law students and young lawyers within his office, with the CBA Alberta Mentoring Program, and with the Law Society of Alberta Mentor Express Program.

Rob is a member of The Glencoe Club, where he enjoys exercising and spending time with his family, friends and colleagues.

In 2022, Rob was nominated for The Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee Medal (Alberta) for outstanding contributions to serve Alberta, the community and the Ministry of Justice and Solicitor General.