Sherry MacLennan is appointed executive director of BC Unclaimed Property Society

Sherry MacLennan has been appointed executive director of the BC Unclaimed Property Society – the province's administrator of dormant accounts dedicated to reuniting people with their unclaimed money.

A practicing lawyer and an executive leader, MacLennan brings more than 25 years of diverse management experience in the legal and non-profit sectors to the role. She was previously with Legal Aid BC, where she served as vice president, public legal information and applications, following a series of progressively senior leadership roles and an active legal practice in both public and private sectors. At Legal Aid BC, she was responsible for the legal aid application processes, legal clinics, local agents, Indigenous services, digital delivery, publications, social media, various websites, and community engagement on behalf of the organization.

In her new role, MacLennan will focus on making the not-for-profit society's services more accessible to people filing claims for forgotten funds and holders of unclaimed accounts as well as raising awareness about the organization, which has $178 million in unclaimed funds in its database.

“With the exponential growth of online fraud coupled with the increasing number of questionable consultants and companies offering to track down unclaimed funds for a fee, people are naturally skeptical of any organization offering to reunite them with their forgotten money,” said MacLennan. “We want to change perceptions and instill trust in the BC Unclaimed Property Society by ensuring that unclaimed money is put back in the hands of the rightful owners.”

The BC Unclaimed Property Society which was established in 2003 by the Province of B.C. and Vancouver Foundation to manage B.C.'s dormant accounts and holds unclaimed funds as the legal custodian of the rightful owners. 

Throughout her career, MacLennan has gained extensive expertise in governance, strategy, operations, digital transformation, community engagement and public legal education.