Kai Olson focuses on political law and advises clients whose activities lie at the intersection of business, government and public policy. His practice focuses on business integrity and government ethics, lobbying law, anti-bribery and corruption, public sector conflicts of interest, and election and campaign finance law.
Kai assists large public and private companies, government contractors, non-profits, and lobbyists navigate the myriad of ever expanding political laws that apply to their day-to-day activities. He develops and administers comprehensive multi-jurisdictional compliance programs to minimize legal and reputational risk, and is routinely engaged to deliver training sessions, conduct audits and internal investigations, and address whistleblower complaints.
Kai has significant experience in all areas of lobbying law. In addition to advising clients on lobbyist registration and continuous disclosure requirements, he regularly reviews agreements to ensure that contingency fee prohibitions are respected and that the activity of agents or subcontractors does not create undue lobbying law risk.
Kai also helps companies and individuals with laws and regulations regarding conflicts of interest, financial disclosure and divestment, ethical screens, and “revolving door” restrictions that are triggered when individuals begin government service and when companies hire individuals from the public sector. He provides tailored advice regarding gift and hospitality rules within the context of government contracting, and assists asset managers with ethics and lobbying issues that may arise from their engagement with public sector pension funds and investment corporations.
He represents companies in freedom of information matters under federal and provincial legislation, including with respect to the protection of confidential, commercial information.
During election cycles, Kai advises corporations and organizations engaged in “third party” campaign activity (similar to that of U.S. PACs) on compliance with election and campaign finance laws across Canada. In connection with this counsel, he advises on the creation and registration of third parties, on financial reporting and audit requirements, and on corporate governance matters related to third party administration.
In addition to helping clients navigate compliance risks, Kai acts for clients who are alleged to have contravened the federal Lobbying Act, Canada Elections Act, Conflict of Interest Act, as well as the Ontario Lobbyists Registration Act and Election Finances Act. Prior to joining the firm, Kai was litigation counsel at the Ontario Securities Commission, where he worked on a variety of complex investigations and proceedings relating to capital markets misconduct, and he brings his experience to bear when defending clients before enforcement bodies.
He serves on the board of directors of Brain Injury Canada, a national organization focused on advocacy for the brain injury community in Canada, and is a former executive member of the Ontario Bar Association’s Young Lawyers Division (East).
Before attending law school, Kai worked for a Senator on Parliament Hill.
