Legislative Drafting Webinar | Legislative Drafting and the Environment: From Backyards to Biomes

Kristi Cairns, Legislative Counsel, Office of Legislative Counsel, Legislative Assembly of Ontario

Kristi Cairns is a legislative drafter with deep experience at the intersection of environmental policy and public law. After completing a degree in environmental engineering, she earned her law degree from Dalhousie University in 2001, along with a Certificate in Marine and Environmental Law. She was called to the bar in 2002 and began her legal career practicing pharmaceutical patent litigation at Gowlings, where she spent two years before moving into public service.

Kristi then joined the legislative drafting team within the Legal Services Branch of Ontario’s Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks. Over the next 16 years, she worked as instructing counsel on a wide range of complex legislative and regulatory initiatives, including emissions trading, administrative penalties, spills, air pollution, the cosmetic pesticides ban, pollinator health, Drive Clean, and the modernization of approvals.

In January 2020, Kristi joined the Office of Legislative Counsel, moving to the other side of the drafting table. In her current role, she works on a broad array of bills, regulations, and motions for several ministries, including the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks, bringing a practical, policy‑informed perspective to legislative drafting.

Andrea A. Cole, Lawyer, Law Department, The City of Calgary

Andrea Cole practices administrative law in Alberta as in-house counsel with The City of Calgary, a position she has held since 2016. Her practice includes drafting municipal bylaws, policy review, and legislative interpretation. A graduate of the University of Toronto Faculty of Law, Andrea was first called to the bar in Ontario in 2010. After articles, she began her law career within Ontario’s Ministry of the Attorney General (first at Crown Law Office-Civil Law and then with Social Justice Tribunals Ontario).

Andrea has co-authored two articles on administrative law that were published in the Canadian Journal of Administrative Law & Practice and the Canadian Bar Review. Along with co-counsel, Andrea represented The City of Calgary as an intervener before the Supreme Court of Canada in the Auer appeal that addressed judicial review of subordinate legislation.

Thomas Cormie, Senior Counsel, Legislative Services Branch, Department of Justice Canada

Thomas Cormie was raised in Whitehorse and holds BA, BCL and LLB degrees from McGill University and an MA from Columbia University in the City of New York. Thomas articled at Justice Canada’s Montréal offices in 2011, and is a member of the Barreau du Québec.

Thomas conducted judicial review litigation before the Federal Court until 2016, then moved to Ottawa to begin work as legislative counsel in Justice’s Headquarters Regulations Section. Since arriving in Ottawa, Thomas has on two occasions stepped away from drafting regulations to work on assignment providing advice on various administrative law matters, as well as on other matters related to legislative drafting and interpretation.

Although Thomas may be called upon to prepare regulations sponsored by most federal ministers, Thomas has particular responsibilities in assisting Environment and Climate Change Canada’s regulatory initiatives.

Jaimie Graham, Legal Counsel, Alberta Utilities Commission

Jaimie Graham is legal counsel for the Alberta Utilities Commission. She holds a LL.M. from the University of Calgary, focusing on natural resources, energy, and environmental law, and has participated in the University of Victoria’s Indigenous Law Research Methodologies Intensive. Her work experience includes roles with the Government of Canada, the Yukon Utilities Board, and the Alberta Electric System Operator.

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