Following his military career, Paulson spent two years at Simon Fraser University in Burnaby and then joined the Royal Canadian Mounted Police as a Cadet in 1986.

[4] Paulson was the driving force behind Operation E-Pandora against the Hells Angels East End Vancouver chapter.

In 2006 Paulson told the journalists William Marsden and Julian Sher: "The East End chapter is the most senior, the most powerful.

[5] As part of E-Pandora, in October 2003 Paulson signed on the behalf of the RCMP the contract with the informer Michael Plante.

On 21 November 2011 Paulson was promoted to Commissioner,[7][8] one month following the release of his predecessor's recommendations about the Mayerthorpe killing spree.