Former chief legal officer of FLO EV, Travis Allan, is counting on AI-assistance for operating proficiencies
Travis Allan has started up a new law firm. It’s something he's done before, but last time he did it with a partner. This time, Allan has begun by flying solo (although he’s already in the hiring phase) and focusing on a niche specialty: the law and regulations governing clean energy and energy-efficient technologies.
“I really, really like the nexus of law and policy. It’s something I’ve been working on for many years, and I just knew that I wanted to build a very specific type of firm that understood the interplay between the regulations that the government passes and the way that those [regulations] are used to support clean-energy and energy-efficient technologies. I knew what I wanted, and I just had to build it.”
The firm, located in downtown Toronto, is officially known as Travis J. Allan Professional Corporation but will operate under the brand Allan Law and Policy. Allan says he already has a strong mix of clients, including global companies operating in North America and Canadian companies doing business here but looking to expand beyond our borders. Typically, he says, he works on matters at the national or international scale.
Technically, the firm opened on May 1, but Allan was so busy that he didn’t have time to set up his website or make a formal announcement about the firm’s launch until June 22. One of the many start-up tasks has included evaluating technology that he hopes will streamline operations and create efficiencies for the firm. To that end, he is piloting AI tools designed to assist with responsibilities ranging from onboarding new clients and billing to contract revisions and the automation of internal systems and processes.
“I am very interested in how they can support me in doing what I would say is the higher value negotiations and work,” he explains.
Starting up a clean-energy and energy-transition firm now may seem like a bit of a gamble, given the changes in public policy instituted after Prime Minister Mark Carney succeeded Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and considering that a lot of international corporations seem to be backing away from electrification commitments, including halting the building of battery or electric vehicle manufacturing plants. But Allan isn’t worried. In fact, he’s bullish on the technology and insists it’s here to stay. Especially as more consumers get a taste of what it offers.
“The nice thing about electrification is that because it is an objectively better technology – from both a cost and an operational perspective – the headlines are less important than the actual experience that drivers have. What you find, if you look at survey data, is that people, generally, do not move away from adopting an electric vehicle or a heat pump or an energy-efficient smart thermostat. These are technologies that, once a consumer adopts them, they never ever look back,” he explains.
He says the energy transition is inevitable — a one-way move — and that the only real question is how fast it happens. He prefers working with companies that want to be part of that shift rather than resist it, and finds the constant flow of innovation and new players in the space what makes the work so rewarding.
Additionally, he is betting that a firm that demonstrates sectoral expertise and offers clients high-value assistance will be better able to withstand the AI-driven disruption hitting the legal world. And that’s what he says he’s building: a nationally competitive organization staffed with people who understand not just the specific business of the clients, but the technologies that underpin them and that will drive the future.
Allan’s background seems to be designed to support that premise. Currently, he is the president and CEO of the Canadian Charging Infrastructure Council, which is also one of Allan’s major clients. He notes that “any new files are evaluated for conflicts on that basis. Luckily, since it is advocating for the best interests of the industry as agreed by members, it hasn't created any challenges.”
In part, he developed his interest in electrification and electric-vehicle technology while serving as chief legal and public affairs officer at FLO EV Charging, which operates charging stations in Canada and the US. Still, his interest in environmental and climate law goes back even earlier in his career. The first firm he co-founded was Zizzo Allan Climate Law LLP.
Allan, who got his JD from the University of Toronto, is also able to draw on his experience at larger firms, including working as an associate at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP and Affiliates in New York, as a partner at DeMarco LLP, and counsel at Gilbert’s LLP.
As he begins this new chapter of his career, Allan is keeping an eye on three key issues on behalf of his clients. The first is the overall power system, especially amid growing demands from data centres and quantum computing facilities. He says that, because of the strain on the system, his clients are having to consider managing or reducing their own electricity demand, or securing new energy sources.
The second concern is what he calls the “very choppy multilateral multipolar international order” and how that is affecting investment plans. As challenging as these business waters are, he says he can see advantages for Canada and Canadian clients, with the country seeming like a more stable option than many others.
Third is the relationship between Canada and the United States and the regulatory regimes of the two countries, and how his clients will have to navigate rules (such as light vehicle fuel efficient standards or tailpipe emissions, for example) that could be diverging, in a way that still allows them to sell their technology and products into both markets and beyond.
Still, despite those challenges, he’s excited about the idea of Canada becoming a global leader in electrification, especially given rising fossil fuel prices driven by the war in Iran and other factors.
“I think Canada has a real opportunity to build and export successes in this area. There’s a bit of a gap that’s happening in the United States, and we actually have a real potential to fill that gap with some of our homegrown talent, because we've had a bit more of a stable policy environment. Personally, as a Canadian, but also as a service provider to Canadian innovators, that is very, very exciting.”
