Thomas J. Timmins
Partner
- Year of Call, Ontario (2000)
Areas of focus

Areas of focus
Tom leads Gowling WLG’s Energy Practice in Canada. He specializes in helping clients navigate opportunities in the global energy transition, including power and storage project development and investment.
Tom and the Gowling WLG Energy Practice team are recognized for their ability to bring large, complex and challenging energy projects to successful completion. They are frequently sought after for their understanding of the relevant contracts, the broader industry context and ever-evolving regulatory landscape. Recent examples of Tom’s work include:
Recognized as a "Leading Individual" by The Legal 500 Canada and Who's Who Legal, Tom serves as a director of Aazhogan Bridge, a member of the Legal Committee of Transparency International, a board member of the Canadian Ditchley Foundation, and an advisor at the Centre for Urban Energy at Toronto Metropolitan University. From 2016 to 2024, Tom led Gowling WLG Canada’s highly successful China Practice and, since 2022, he has served on the roster of adjudicators under the Canadian Free Trade Agreement. He teaches Infrastructure and Project Finance Law at Windsor Law and previously served as Chair of the Canadian Solar Industries Association (now CanREA).
A frequent commentator on the energy transition and on geopolitical matters, Tom has been quoted in leading news outlets, including the Economist Intelligence Unit, CBC, CTV, The Globe and Mail, the Financial Post, World Journal, BNN and Canadian Business.
Tom leads Gowling WLG’s Energy Practice in Canada. He specializes in helping clients navigate opportunities in the global energy transition, including power and storage project development and investment.
Tom and the Gowling WLG Energy Practice team are recognized for their ability to bring large, complex and challenging energy projects to successful completion. They are frequently sought after for their understanding of the relevant contracts, the broader industry context and ever-evolving regulatory landscape. Recent examples of Tom’s work include:
Recognized as a "Leading Individual" by The Legal 500 Canada and Who's Who Legal, Tom serves as a director of Aazhogan Bridge, a member of the Legal Committee of Transparency International, a board member of the Canadian Ditchley Foundation, and an advisor at the Centre for Urban Energy at Toronto Metropolitan University. From 2016 to 2024, Tom led Gowling WLG Canada’s highly successful China Practice and, since 2022, he has served on the roster of adjudicators under the Canadian Free Trade Agreement. He teaches Infrastructure and Project Finance Law at Windsor Law and previously served as Chair of the Canadian Solar Industries Association (now CanREA).
A frequent commentator on the energy transition and on geopolitical matters, Tom has been quoted in leading news outlets, including the Economist Intelligence Unit, CBC, CTV, The Globe and Mail, the Financial Post, World Journal, BNN and Canadian Business.
Tom's recent experience includes:
Accelerating major grid and energy infrastructure: Legal and regulatory implications of Budget 2025 (6 November 2025)
The fading reality of municipal utility dividends: Financial pressures on LDCs in the transitioning energy landscape (24 October 2025)
Virtually great: New opportunities for corporate power purchase agreements in Ontario (17 July 2025)
How Ontario’s expanded “strong mayor” municipalities create opportunities for energy infrastructure (17 July 2025)
Observations from Gowling WLG’s 2025 Energy Outlook (3 June 2025)
The future of LDCs: How to unlock more innovation and economic development (3 June 2025)
The 2025 Ontario budget: Takeaways for the energy sector (3 June 2025)
Critical minerals: Canada's role in the future of energy (3 April 2025)
Enwave's evolution: A case study in utility transformation (5 February 2025)
Powering Ontario’s future: New long-term energy procurement plan and strategy (5 February 2025)
Climate and security trade-offs: Transatlantic, industrial and trade policy in the green transition (25 November 2024)
Global traceability: Unpacking a rapidly evolving part of the Canadian battery ecosystem (12 November 2024)
Ontario government announces changes to the Electricity Act: Will the federal government follow through to remove barriers to LDC consolidation and modernization? (8 November 2024)
Some Ontario FIT contracts can be repowered (5 November 2024)
Tightening American clean vehicle tax credit may create advantage for Canadian firms (5 June 2024)
Alberta hits "Go" again: Understanding recent announcements affecting renewables projects (22 March 2024)
Streamlining electrification: Ontario's optimized process for electric vehicle charging stations (12 March 2024)
Locating parts foreign and domestic: How businesses in Canada may benefit from the US Inflation Reduction Act (16 February 2024)
COP28: What are the key takeaways and how might it impact your ESG strategy? (21 December 2023)
Recent Ontario energy directive takes aim at province's looming power supply gap – but at what cost? (17 February 2023)
Why Germany's hydrogen strategy just changed everything: Unpacking Gowling WLG's recent Energy Innovator Roundtable (13 February 2023)
Understanding the recent proposed amendments to the Investment Canada Act (6 February 2023)
Aazhogan Limited Partnership acquires bridge at International Falls (20 May 2022)
Energy Innovators Roundtable Series | What you need to know – Key COP26 takeaways for Ontario energy businesses (18 November 2021)
Energy Innovators Roundtable Series | Equity, Diversity & Inclusion in the Ontario Energy Sector (21 October 2021)
Energy Innovators Roundtable Series | Reshaping regulation to recognize the imperative for technological change (24 September 2021)
To renegotiate or unilaterally revise? Help for would-be energy procurement rule changers on both sides of the Atlantic (11 May 2001)
Canada starting to move on climate-related financial system risk (8 January 2021)
All of the above: Canada reveals $15 billion plan to accelerate decarbonization (17 December 2020)


