No time to waste: What needs to change to get major projects and key infrastructure built in Canada?

Osler and business leaders in Calgary participated in a post-election panel discussion on what Canada needs to do to convert aspirations for economic growth and trade diversification into a regulatory environment that actually secures investment in major projects and infrastructure across the country. Panelists included:

Brad Wall, Special Advisor, Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP

Brad Wall is a Special Advisor in the Osler Calgary office. Prior to joining Osler, he was in politics for 18 years where he demonstrated a consistent ability to bring political and business leaders together as he implemented creative ways to bolster the Province’s economic well-being.

In 2007, Brad was elected as Premier of Saskatchewan and helped lead the province to a period of strong population and economic growth, export expansion, record infrastructure investment and tax reductions while helping to earn the provinces first ever AAA credit rating.

Brad offers Osler clients his strategic insight and guidance, particularly in relation to the energy and agri-food industries. In addition, clients will benefit from Brad’s extensive understanding of the interconnection between business, politics, and trade, on a global scale.

Brad Gilmour, Partner, Regulatory, Indigenous and Environmental Law, Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP

Brad is a partner in the Regulatory, Indigenous and Environmental Group of our Calgary office and Co-Chair of the Environmental Disputes, Investigations and Enforcement Group.

His practice focuses primarily on environmental, energy, natural resources, regulatory and Indigenous law. Brad has experience in facility approval applications associated with a wide array of industry and project types, including energy, natural resource, chemical, petrochemical, hydro, oil sands, carbon capture and storage, biofuel and renewable power.

Brad appears before the Alberta Energy Regulator, the Alberta Environmental Appeals Board, the Alberta Utilities Commission, the Natural Resources Conservations Board, the British Columbia Environmental Appeal Board and the Canada Energy Regulator. Brad also advises clients regarding regulatory compliance issues, spills, contaminated sites and environmental and regulatory prosecutions and has appeared before various courts including the Provincial Court of British Columbia, the Alberta Court of Justice, the Court of King’s Bench of Alberta, the Court of Appeal of Alberta, the Provincial Court of Saskatchewan, the Provincial Court of Newfoundland and Labrador and the Supreme Court of Canada.

Before practicing law, Brad worked in Calgary as an environmental consultant conducting environmental liability assessments and site remediation programs. He writes and speaks on environmental and regulatory law topics and has taught courses on environmental law and occupational health and safety law for the University of Calgary, Athabasca University and the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology.

Jeff Lawson, Executive Vice President, Corporate Development & Chief Sustainability Officer, Cenovus Energy

Jeff has extensive experience in domestic and international mergers and acquisitions, investments and corporate restructurings. Prior to joining Cenovus in 2023, Jeff spent 15 years at Peters & Co. Limited in senior finance roles including Managing Director of the Corporate Finance group and as a member of the Executive Committee. Before Peters & Co., Jeff spent 14 years as a securities lawyer at the law firm of Burnet, Duckworth & Palmer LLP (BD&P), where he was co-head of the Securities Group and a member of the Executive Committee. During his tenure at BD&P, Jeff was recognized as one of Canada’s most creative lawyers as well as a top cross-border corporate lawyer. Jeff has served on the board of directors at a number of public and private companies, and charitable organizations. He holds a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Alberta.

Gitane De Silva, ICD.D Founder & Principal, GDStrategic

Gitane is the Founder and Principal of the consulting firm, GDStrategic. She previously served as the CEO of the Canada Energy Regulator and as Alberta’s Deputy Minister for International and Intergovernmental Relations. Gitane is also a seasoned diplomat and a specialist in Canada-U.S. relations, having served as Alberta’s Senior Representative in Washington, DC during the first Trump Administration, and Canada’s Consul General in Chicago, among other roles. A respected public policy leader, Gitane is a Managing Director with Negotiations Collective, a Special Advisor at Blue Rock Law, a Senior Counsel with Sussex Strategy Group, a Global Fellow with the Canada Institute at the Wilson Center in Washington, DC, and a Board Member with the Public Policy Forum.