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People

Carlos Sayao

Partner

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Tel: +1 416 294 7800

Email: csayao@tyrllp.com

Bar Admissions: Ontario, 2015

Practice Areas:

  • Arbitration
  • Class Action Defence
    • Advertising & Consumer Claims
    • Appellate Litigation
    • Commercial Disputes
    • Competition & Anti-Trust Litigation
    • Franchise Disputes
    • Gaming Disputes
    • Public Interest & Constitutional Litigation
  • Investigations & Regulatory Defence
  • Shareholder, Partnership & Securities Disputes
  • Sports Disputes

Carlos is a practical and results-oriented litigator who advocates on behalf of a diverse range of clients, including both plaintiffs and defendants in class proceedings.

With his calm demeanour, he effectively navigates high-pressure situations with unflappable composure. Before joining Tyr, Carlos was an associate at Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP, where he developed a broad commercial and class actions litigation practice.

As a former competitive swimmer who represented Canada at the World Championships and Commonwealth Games, Carlos brings to bear his passion for sport in representing athletes and sport organizations in complex disputes. He has appeared before the Court of Arbitration for Sport on multiple occasions, including representing South African Olympic champion Caster Semenya in a landmark case challenging a regulation that requires certain women to lower their naturally-occurring testosterone levels as a condition of participation in women's sport.

Click on a case to view details.

Alberta Cricket Association v. Alberta Cricket Council Aleksandra Shelton v. Polish Olympic Committee and Polish Fencing Federation CarePartners ats Redublo Caster Semenya v. World Athletics Central Soccer League v. Ontario Soccer Chiropractic Negligence Chris Mosier Detour Gold Corporation Dominika Jamnicky v. Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport Dutee Chand v. International Association of Athletics Federations Franchisor General Motors of Canada Company InnVest Hotels LP International Canadian Lacrosse Athlete International Canadian Powerlifter International Paralympic Committee Internet Services Company Jazmine Fenlator-Victorian v. International Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation Kingsdale Partners LP Lisa Fergusson v. Equestrian Canada Malanca et al. Ats HK United Construction Ltd. et al. Olympic Swimming Athlete QM LP et al. v. Mors Refining Systems Inc. et al. Quantum Murray LP Rogers Communications Inc. re System Access Fees Rose Hill Corp. et al. v. Frame-Tech Structures et al. SIF Solar Energy Income & Growth Fund et al. v. Solar Income Fund Inc. et al. Soccer Coaches Todd Hays Vale Canada Limited et al. World Anti-Doping Agency Wrestling Canada Lutte
Board Memberships

Swim Ontario

Professional Affiliations

The Advocates' Society

Teaching Engagements
  • Lecturer, Anti-Doping and Discrimination in Sport, Master of International Sports Law, ISDE Law and Business School, Madrid
  • Guest Lecturer, Discrimination in Sport, University of Victoria Faculty of Law
Education
  • McGill University, BCL/LLB, 2014
  • University of Oxford, MSc (Environmental Management) (With Distinction), 2007
  • University of Michigan, BSc (Civil & Environmental Engineering) (Summa Cum Laude), 2006
  • Benchmark Canada — Litigation Star  (2024)
  • Benchmark Canada Impact Case of the Year Award  (2019)
  • Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory: Leading Lawyers to Watch - Commercial Arbitration
  • The Best Lawyers in Canada: Ones to Watch  (2025 Edition);  Corporate and Commercial Litigation