Register to Lobby, or Risk Being Charged

Press Release

March 14, 2024

Gerald Paulin was hired to lobby for Cat Lake First Nation, but he failed to register his lobbying activities pursuant to the Lobbying Act. Failing to do this has led to charges.

Between November 2017 and May 2019, Mr. Paulin was hired to provide Cat Lake First Nation (CLFN) with consultation services to get federal funding for housing projects. Mr. Paulin allegedly lobbied public office holders (POH) regarding the financing of housing projects in the CLFN community, yet failed to register his actions as per the Lobbying Act.

The Office of the Commissioner of Lobbying of Canada (OCL) was alerted to the allegations as a result of a CBC article. In the article, Mr. Paulin claimed he was owed money from the Cat Lake First Nation for lobbying. This led to the start of an investigation by the OCL which was later handed over to the RCMP.

The Commissioner of Lobbying referred the file to the RCMP’s Sensitive and International Investigations team (SII), who have the authority to decide if they will do their own investigation.

Gerald Paulin (65) from Thunder Bay is charged with the following:

1. Failure to file a return as required by 5(1)(a) after undertaking to communicate with a POH, which is an offence under section 14(1) of the Lobbying Act;
2. Failure to file a return as required by 5(1)(b) after undertaking to organize a meeting between a POH and any person, which is an offence under section 14(1) of the Lobbying Act; and,
3. Receiving a payment that is in whole or in part contingent on the outcome of any matter described in subparagraph 5(1)(a)(i) to (vi), which is prohibited by section 10.1 and an offence under section 14(2) of the Lobbying Act

Court for Mr. Paulin is scheduled on April 5, 2024 at 9 a.m. at the Ontario provincial court in Thunder Bay.

Fast Facts:

• The Lobbying Act sets requirements and standards for the transparent and ethical lobbying of federal officials.
• The Office of the Commissioner of Lobbying is responsible for maintaining a searchable registry of information reported by lobbyists, providing education to stakeholders and verifying that lobbyists comply with the requirements.
• Home – Office of the Commissioner of Lobbying of Canada (lobbycanada.gc.ca)

SII would like to thank the Indigenous Services Canada, and the Office of the Commissioner of Lobbying of Canada for their assistance in this investigation.

“SII and the OCL’s partnership is a key component in this successful outcome and serves to outline the importance of compliance with the Lobbying Act.” – Supt. Jérémie Landry, Officer in charge of Sensitive and International Investigations.

–30–

Contact information

Media Relations
RCMP O Division (Ontario)
Email: media.relations.rcmp-Ontario-relations.medias.grc@rcmp-grc.gc.ca

ILR5