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Olga Redko (she·her·elle)

Associate
514 934-7742
Assistant: Elza Bacic
438 601-2916

Languages: English, French and Ukranian

Quebec Bar — 2016
Law Society of Ontario — 2016

Olga has a general civil litigation practice, with significant experience in public law. She has acted for clients in a variety of administrative, regulatory, and constitutional law matters, and in cases involving the civil liability of public bodies. She also acts for international clients in recognition and enforcement proceedings before Canadian courts, including proceedings to homologate judgments and arbitral awards and to enforce letters rogatory. She has argued before all levels of court in Québec and federally, including before the Supreme Court of Canada.

Prior to joining IMK in 2017, Olga served as a law clerk to the Honourable Clément Gascon at the Supreme Court of Canada. She currently teaches Judicial Institutions and Civil Procedure at McGill University’s Faculty of Law.

Representative work

Reference re Genetic Non-Discrimination Act: assisting Doug Mitchell, who was appointed amicus curiae before the Québec Court of Appeal and subsequently before the Supreme Court of Canada, in submissions regarding the nature of the federal criminal law power as well as the constitutional validity of the Genetic Non-Discrimination Act.

Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration) v. Vavilov: Assisting Audrey Boctor, who was named amicus curiae before the Supreme Court of Canada, in submissions concerning the redefinition of the standard of review in Canadian administrative law.

Association québécoise des avocats et avocates en droit de l’immigration et al. v. Minister of Immigration, Diversity and Inclusion : Plaintiffs in injunction proceedings requiring the Minister to continue treating immigration applications prior to the adoption of draft legislation.

Hak et al. v. Attorney General of Québec: A constitutional challenge to and request for a stay of the Act respecting the laicity of the state, Quebec’s ban on wearing religious symbols.

National Council of Canadian Muslims et al. v. Attorney General of Québec: the plaintiffs in a successful application for a stay of the Act to foster adherence to State religious neutrality and, in particular, to provide a framework for requests for accommodations on religious grounds in certain bodies (“Bill 62”).

Du et al. v. Minister of Immigration, Diversity and Inclusion: Applicants in a judicial review of decisions by the Minister of Immigration relating to the requirements of the Québec Experience Program.

Aroland First Nation and Ginoogaming First Nation v. TransCanada Pipelines Ltd. et al.:  the National Energy Board in an Ontario case concerning a novel application of the duty to consult.

Delage v. City of Westmount: the City of Westmount, defending a suit in liability for the adoption of a municipal resolution.

R. v. Bird: the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, as intervener before the Supreme Court of Canada, in a case about the applicability of the doctrine of collateral attack when Charter rights are at issue.

Ross, Roy & Satalic v. Her Majesty the Queen: part of the Québec counsel team in a national class action against the Government of Canada for the targeting, investigation and discharge of thousands of LGBT members of the Canadian Armed Forces, the RCMP and the federal public service (the LGBT Purge). The parties reached a historic settlement worth $145M, the largest settlement for systemic discrimination against the LGBT community in the world.

Education

B.C.L., LL.B., (Dean’s Honour List), McGill University, 2015
B.A. (major in political science, minors in English literature and French), McGill University, 2011

Clerkship

Law Clerk to the Honourable Clément Gascon, at the Supreme Court of Canada, 2015-2016

Industry recognition

2025 Best Lawyers in Canada — Ones to Watch — Administrative and Public Law

Associations

Canadian Bar Association
The Advocates’ Society
Young Bar Association of Montreal

Professional activities

Canadian Bar Association, Quebec Division, Administrative Law Section – President (2018-2019), Vice-President (2017-2018)

Mile-End Legal Clinic: member of the Board of Directors (2017 – current)

Pro Bono Ontario (Assistance Program to Self-Represented Litigants seeking Leave to Appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada) (2017-2018)

Teaching

Sessional Lecturer, Judicial Institutions and Civil Procedure, McGill University Faculty of Law (2022)

Recent publications

“Religious Practice as a ‘Thin Skull’ in the Context of Civil Liability” (2014) 72:1 UT Fac L Rev 37.

“The Role of Private Law in the Control of Risks Associated with Tobacco Smoking: The Canadian Experience”, with Lara Khoury and Marie-Ève Couture-Ménard (2013) 39 AJLM 442.

Speaking Engagements

Panelist, “The Legacy of Justice Rosalie Abella on Canadian Administrative Law”, 16th Annual National Forum on Administrative Law & Practice, Osgoode Hall (October 2021)

Unpacking constitutional challenges to legislation, Annual Conference of the Young Bar of Montreal (Montreal, May 2019)

Panel chair, The influence of Charter values in Administrative Decision-Making and the Future Course After the Decision in Trinity Western, 2018 CBA National Administrative, Labour and Employment Law Conference (Ottawa, November 2018)

Actions devant la Cour supérieure du Québec à l’encontre du MIDI ou autres organismes administratifs provinciaux, annual conference of the Association québécoise des avocats et avocates en droit d’immigration (Montreal, November 2018)

Répartition de compétences et règlementation du cannabis, The Runnymede Society at the University of Montreal (Montreal, April 2018)