Aurora Cannabis General Counsel and Senior Vice President Jillian Swainson (photo credit: Brownlee LLP)
Upon her completion of her LLB at the University of Alberta Faculty of Law in 2007, Jillian Swainson had every reason to be confident that her twin academic background in law and commerce would position her for an exciting career in business law. Nothing, however, would have hinted at a career in an industry that didn't even exist at the time of her graduation.
This nonetheless has become a reality for Swainson, who on February 1, 2018 formally assumes the role of General Counsel and Senior Vice President of Edmonton-based Aurora Cannabis Inc., one of Canada's three largest licenced producers of medical cannabis.
"I certainly never thought I'd be telling my 93-year-old grandmother that I'm going to work for a cannabis company," said Swainson of her new appointment.
"That said, I've been working closely with Aurora for the past four years and they ended up becoming my main client, so it was a natural move."
Swainson, a Red Deer native who completed a Bachelor of Commerce at the University of Alberta prior to enrolling in UAlberta Law, joins the team at Aurora after a decade-long stint at Brownlee LLP in Edmonton which began as an articling position and ultimately culminated in a partnership at the firm.
At Brownlee she handled a wide range of business law matters, including corporate, commercial, intellectual property and securities work. It was during this time that she developed a working relationship with Aurora's founders, CEO Terry Booth and President Steve Dobler, who first exposed her to this new fast-growing business sector.
As Aurora's go-to legal advisor, Swainson quickly became enthralled with the breakneck pace of change in the burgeoning medical cannabis industry, and realized this was an opportunity to be at the forefront of something new and exciting.
"It's a totally new industry, and one in which Canada is leading the world. The pace of change in this sector is so fast that six months in the cannabis industry is like six years in virtually any other industry. It's exciting to say the least," she said.
Swainson added that her experience thus far in the cannabis world has made her feel proud to be an Albertan, contending that the province has embraced the industry like few others and is in the process of developing a truly sensible legislative and business model for adult use recreational cannabis..
"I give the Alberta government a lot of credit for how they've handled this economic phenomenon. As an emerging industry nobody had any real idea of what it might look like, but the province has undertaken extensive consultations with the public and with industry experts, and is charting the right course. When you contrast that with Ontario, which has announced that they will only have 40 retailers for a population of over 14 million, you can't help but think that defeats the whole point of legalization," she explained.
She also contends that public attitudes around cannabis are transforming as quickly as the industry itself, and that even within the few years that the industry has existed, she has seen a notable change in the tone of the conversation.
"Two years ago most people still weren't taking this industry seriously. Today we have more and more people in suits with MBAs entering the cannabis world and working alongside the old guard, as well as various other professionals recognizing how significant this sector is going to be in Canada and globally. Fortunately, Aurora has made it a priority to foster an environment wherein both the cannabis "culture" side of the industry and the business professional side of the industry are well respected and they've reached an optimal balance of personnel on their team from various backgrounds and experiences ," she said.
As for her UAlberta Law education, Swainson contends that the Faculty's focus on legal fundamentals and on a good comprehensive legal education put her in great stead for her unexpected career turn.
"I have wonderful memories from U of A Law. My instructors really taught me how to think outside the box about the law and be creative. In the industry I'm in, practically everything is brand new and with little if any precedent, and the education I received, plus my formative experience at Brownlee, was the best training ground for this that I could have hoped for."