K. Dock Yip

Kew Dock Yip (葉求鐸; pinyin: Yè Qiúduó; 1906–2001) was community leader in Toronto's First Chinatown, the first Canadian lawyer of Chinese descent, and played a critical role in helping repeal the Canadian Chinese Exclusion Act in 1947. He is the third youngest son of Yip Sang, a prominent Chinese merchant and paymaster of CP Railway, in Vancouver in the 1900s. Early years Yip was born in Vancouver in 1906, the 17th of 19 sons, and one of 23 children born to prominent Canadian businessman Yip Wang Sang's four wives. In 1931, Yip graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Pharmacy from the University of Michigan. After completing his pharmacological studies, Yip returned to Vancouver where he became Secretary for the Chinese Consulate; it was during this period that Yip decided to pursue a career in law.