All Roads Lead to…? What CUSMA Review Means for Canada

Roundtable Luncheon with The Honourable Janice Charette and Meredith Lilly.

C.D. Howe Institute events and webinars are open to members and their guests.

Please follow this link or contact events@cdhowe.org to register.

Hon. Janice Charette, Canada's Chief Trade Negotiator to the United States 

The Honourable Janice Charette was appointed Chief Trade Negotiator to the United States on February 16, 2026. Having served at the highest levels of Canada’s public service for over four decades in public policy and diplomacy, Ms. Charette has been entrusted by Prime Minister Carney with guiding Canada’s work in the upcoming review of the Canada United States–Mexico Agreement (CUSMA). Ms. Charette acts as a senior advisor to the Prime Minister and the Minister responsible for Canada-U.S. Trade, Dominic LeBlanc as she works to strengthen the trade and investment relationship between Canada, the United States and Mexico. Previously, Ms. Charette served as Clerk of the Privy Council and Secretary to the Cabinet, while also serving as High Commissioner for Canada in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, became a Privy Counsellor in September 2023 and was named an Officer of the Order of Canada in 2025. Not only has she held numerous senior federal government leadership roles, but she has also been a member of the Board of Directors of numerous organizations, including the Youth Services Bureau of Ottawa; the Public Policy Forum; the Royal Ottawa Health Care Group; the Commonwealth War Graves and Commonwealth War Graves Foundation; the Imperial War Museum (UK) and the Board of Governors of the Commonwealth. Ms. Charette also continues to serve as Vice-Chair of the Board of Directors of the Rideau Hall Foundation and a member of the Board of Directors of the Institute for Research on Public Policy. She attended Carleton University, where she received a Bachelor of Commerce degree, was granted honorary doctorates from Kingston University, United Kingdom and from Carleton University. She also received the ICD.D designation from the Institute of Corporate Directors.

Meredith Lilly, Simon Reisman Chair in International Policy, Carleton University’s Norman Paterson School of  International Affairs

Meredith Lilly, Ph.D., is a full Professor and Simon Reisman Chair in International Economic Policy at Carleton University’s Norman Paterson School of International Affairs. Her research focuses on North American trade relations, Canada’s trade diversification strategy, economic sanctions, and the use of research evidence in policy making. Prior to her appointment at Carleton, she served as Foreign Affairs and International Trade Advisor to Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper. She was previously appointed at the University of British Columbia Okanagan, and has worked in policy roles in several Canadian government departments. She engages regularly with foreign governments and diplomats, and is a frequent media commentator on North American trade issues.

She is a member of CD Howe Institute’s International Economic Policy Council, a non-resident scholar at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy in Texas, an Advisory Board member for the Canadian Global Affairs Institute, and serves as the Academic Partner for Canada’s delegation to the North American Forum.

Expertise: Canada-US relations; international trade policy; free trade negotiations; labour economics; economic sanctions