Christopher Oates
Automatically compiled listing. Details may contain errors.Partner at Gowling WLG
- Called to the bar
- 2010
- Languages
- English
About Christopher Oates
Christopher Oates helps organizations work out what they can and can't do with the customer data they hold. Chris is a partner at Gowling WLG in Toronto, working in the firm's Advertising & Product Regulatory Group, and privacy and online commerce sit at the centre of that practice. The privacy side covers how organizations collect, use and disclose consumer information, from credit reporting and risk management to behavioural tracking, with advice that reaches financial institutions, social media, consumer marketing campaigns and compliance with Canada's anti-spam law (CASL).
With two science degrees from the University of Alberta and a law degree from the University of Toronto, Chris was called to the Ontario bar in 2010. Chris also belongs to the firm's InsurTech Group, where the work includes the privacy side of large M&A deals for major insurance providers.
Chris wrote or co-wrote five chapters of the sixth edition of Advertising and Marketing Law in Canada, published by LexisNexis Canada in 2019, covering topics from green marketing and cosmetics to privacy law, and contributes regularly to the firm's AdBytes newsletter and its privacy alerts. In 2019 Chris and fellow Gowling WLG partner Daniel Cole led a webinar for the Association of Canadian Advertisers on compliant online advertising, behavioural targeting and influencer marketing.
Since 2019, Chris has been recognized in The Best Lawyers in Canada for both Advertising and Marketing Law and Privacy and Data Security Law.
Practice areas
Privacy and consumer data
Chris drafts and reviews privacy policies, checks the privacy obligations that come with new website analytics and tracking tools, and reviews and revises agreements for transferring and processing data.
Advertising, marketing and product regulation
On the marketing side, Chris reviews advertising, packaging and labelling, designs and reviews contests, and advises on social media advertising. The work also covers the regulatory rules for foods, alcoholic beverages, cosmetics and drug products.
Commercial and marketing agreements
Chris advises on service provider agreements and master services agreements, and drafts and reviews talent, media and sponsorship contracts.
Education & credentials
- JD, University of Toronto (2009)
- B.Sc. Hons., University of Alberta
- M.Sc., University of Alberta
- Called to the Bar of Ontario (2010)
Awards & recognition
Publications & speaking
- Advertising and Marketing Law in Canada, 6th Edition (Chapter 6: Green Marketing; Chapter 18: Privacy Law in Canada; Chapter 11: Cosmetics; Chapter 13: Alcohol; Chapter 9: Packaging and Labeling, with Susan Vogt), LexisNexis Canada (2019)
- Privacy in Canada: overview, Practical Law, Thomson Reuters (2014)
- Data Protection in Canada: overview, Practical Law, Thomson Reuters (2014)
- Canadian Privacy Law, the Internet and Social Media, Social Media and Internet Law - Forms and Precedents, LexisNexis (2014)
- Privacy and Data Security in the Cloud: The Issues, the Law, and Mitigating the Risks to Your Business (Part 1), co-written with Lisa Lifshitz and Danielle Waldman, Cyberspace Lawyer (2012)
- Canadian Advertising Law: Behavioural Targeting, Influencer Marketing and Social Media (webinar with Daniel Cole), Association of Canadian Advertisers (2019)
- Privacy Compliance in the Adtech Industry, West LegalEdcenter (2021)
- Social Media and Electronic Marketing: Privacy, and Anti-Spam Obligations, Lexpert's Second Annual Social Media Law Conference, Toronto (2014)
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This listing was generated by AI from public sources in October 2026. It may contain errors, and we can’t guarantee it’s accurate or complete. Before you rely on anything here, verify it on their firm’s website. Confirm Christopher Oates’s licence and standing in the Law Society of Ontario directory ↗
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