“ Don ’ t let fear stop you from trying new opportunities , value your own instincts and feel confident in your decisions . Also , stretch more !”
As a private-practice attorney at a large San Francisco law firm , Cassie Gilson felt , “ It was the right table but the wrong seat at the table .” A client suggested she move to Sacramento and work for him as a lobbyist . “ It was really a leap of faith to change careers , to go from practicing law to lobbying , and then moving to a city where you knew no one ,” Gilson says of relocating in 2001 .
In January 2019 , Gilson founded Axiom Advisors , making her one of the only women who are managing partners at the top lobbying firms in Sacramento . She oversees a staff of about 10 employees , and her firm represents 60-70 clients on issues such as land use , housing , energy , alternative transportation , climate change , health care , education , privacy and consumer protection , and the sharing economy . Clients include the California Building Industry Association , SunPower , Honeywell and Planned Parenthood Affiliates of California .
Gilson was raised in the Bay Area and earned her bachelor ’ s degree from Wesleyan University in Connecticut and a law degree from Stanford Law School . She was policy and program director for the San Francisco-based California Council for Environmental and Economic Balance , and then on the legal staff of the Office of Science and Technology Policy in the Clinton White House . She worked as an attorney at Landels , Ripley & Diamond as well as Farella , Braun + Martel in San Francisco in the 1990s . After moving to Sacramento , Gilson lobbied on and off and did a stint as senior policy adviser to former Gov . Gray Davis before launching Axiom Advisors .
Gilson — who has a personal and professional commitment to conservation — spends significant time negotiating on environmental policy solutions and the implementation of climate change legislation , attempting to protect the state ’ s progressive regulatory values while supporting economic growth and private-sector innovation . This balanced framework resonates throughout her work , she says . “ When you represent clients that aren ’ t from California or used to California , being able to counsel them about what ’ s possible here and how best to think about their policy and their business in the context of the political landscape here is really vital to success .”
One of Gilson ’ s proudest accomplishments is her involvement with a group of women lawyers and advocates in 2017 to pass Senate Bill 500 , legislation that protects victims of sexual extortion over the internet . “ California ’ s extortion laws were adopted well before the internet , and this legislation updated them to allow prosecutors to go after a particularly pernicious kind of cyber criminal who coerces — often teens and young women — to hand over explicit digital images and the like ,” she says . “ I often lobby on issues at the intersection of technology and law , and being able to work with a phenomenal group of women and pass a law in this space that will protect young women was particularly gratifying .” Despite Gilson ’ s accomplishments , she says evolving to “ own my space at a table ” took time . She recalls working with a group of lobbyists who were older men on legislation involving the California Environmental Quality Act ; they ignored her strategic advice on “ an issue that I felt like I had considerable expertise . … We came out the other end ( successful ), and I realized that my approach and my thought process , my strategy was right and , in many instances , was more astute . It took that experience to teach me , ‘ Oh , wait a minute , I really do know quite a bit about certain things and have talents to bring to the table .’”
Now she has the seat she wants , negotiating on critical issues that directly affect business and quality of life throughout the Golden State . Gilson also sits on the Sacramento Valley Conservancy board of trustees and the Lower American River Conservancy program advisory committee .
“ My liberal mother sometimes says , ‘ How can you be a lobbyist ?’” Gilson says . “ My answer to her is always that individuals matter , and on most big pieces of legislation you can often point to a person or a couple of people who really were able to thread the needle and bring it all together or achieve the goal that ( they ) were working toward .”
Sena Christian is managing editor of Comstock ’ s . Online at www . senachristian . com and on Twitter @ SenaCChristian .
March 2021 | comstocksmag . com 55