Eugene Oscapella

Barrister & Solicitor

Ottawa, Canada

Eugene Oscapella helps organizations understand legislative and policy change in Canada.  Since 1985 his company, Oscapella and Associates, has provided both public and private sectors with research and policy advice on issues including privacy, human rights, policy on illegal drugs, medico-legal subjects, military justice, intelligence, national security and criminal justice. He has served on six federal and provincial commissions of inquiry, dealing with issues such as national security, military justice, new reproductive technologies, health care, terrorism and political corruption. His research in two fields—drug policy and privacy—has been published widely.

Mr. Oscapella graduated with an undergraduate degree in economics at the University of Toronto (1974), obtained his law degree from the University of Ottawa (1977), and received his Master of Laws from the London School of Economics and Political Science (1979). He was called to the Ontario Bar in 1980.

Before forming Oscapella and Associates in 1985, Mr. Oscapella served as a counsel to the Commission of Inquiry Concerning Certain Activities of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and as Director of Legislation and Law Reform for the Canadian Bar Association.

Mr. Oscapella has appeared several times before parliamentary committees to advise on privacy and drug policy issues. For almost two decades he has lectured on drug policy at the University of Ottawa. He is regularly invited to speak in Canada about privacy and drug policy issues and has also lectured on these topics at conferences and academic institutions in several countries – Argentina, Barbados, Brazil, France, Israel, New Zealand, Portugal, Switzerland, United Kingdom, United States and Vietnam.

Mr. Oscapella appears frequently in print and on television and radio about drug law and policy issues and has featured in several documentaries on these issues.

In April 2011, Mr. Oscapella received the Kaiser Foundation National Award for Excellence in Public Policy for his drug policy work.

Mr. Oscapella is currently offering seminars explaining issues relating to Canada’s move to legalize and regulate cannabis: Cannabis in Canada: Moving from Prohibition to Regulation—What You Need to Know. The seminars are designed to help professionals and officials at all levels of government understand the implications of these changes.