Crabtree is Chief Judge of the Provincial Court of BC. He had received his Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of British Columbia in 1978 and law degree from the University of Victoria in 1983. He was called to the BC Bar in 1984. During his legal career he had a general practice in Chilliwack with an emphasis on litigation. In 1999 Judge Crabtree was appointed to the Provincial Court bench. In 2000, he was assigned to the South Fraser District, based in Chilliwack, where he has heard cases in all divisions of the Court. Judge Crabtree has sat in over 30 different court locations throughout the Province, many of which are located in the interior and northern parts of the Province. During his time on the bench, Judge Crabtree has contributed to a number of committees of the Court, including: Member of the BC Judge Association’s Education Committee for approximately eight years; Chair of the Education Committee from 2004 to 2008; member of the Executive of the Judges’ Association; Chair of the 2007 Joint Conference Education Committee; and Chair of the Education Review Committee. In addition, Judge Crabtree has participated in the Provincial Court Students’ Journalism Program; the ad hoc Media Committee; and has been Director and the Court’s representative on the Continuing Legal Education Society of British Columbia Board. Judge Crabtree has also spoken at and participated on a number of panels at judicial education conferences including; The New Judges Program at Lac Carling; The International Conference on Training the Judiciary, the National Judicial Institute, the Provincial Court of British Columbia conferences and JJP conferences. He has also been involved at the Elder College at the University of the Fraser Valley; the Moot Court project at UBC Law School; a Moot Court program involving a local Chilliwack high school; and as a guest speaker to various community organizations.