- Bio
- Awards & Recognition
- Professional Involvement
- Representative Matters
- Selected Speaking Engagements
- Selected Publications
- Insights
- Education
In a highly competitive marketplace, Norman is widely sought after for his wealth of knowledge and experience in negotiating complex commercial real estate transactions. His carefully considered advice and balanced view provides a clear vantage point from which clients can make nimble yet strategic decisions. Norman’s integrity and warm personality have led to long-term relationships with many of his clients.
Norman is a member of the firm's Real Estate Group. With over 40 years of experience, he skillfully guides clients through acquisitions, financings, leasing, dispositions and insolvency matters relating to development properties, office buildings, retail property, residential apartment complexes, industrial buildings, nursing homes, retirement residences and hotels. His practice has involved structuring Canadian and cross-border partnerships, joint ventures, syndications and ground leases.
Norman’s client base includes institutional as well as public and private investors acquiring and/or providing secured debt and equity financing for all types of commercial real estate. In addition, he represents private Canadian companies that acquire significant distressed real estate portfolios from lenders and receivers.
Acting for institutional and private lenders and borrowers, Norman assists with all aspects of real estate debt recovery, restructuring, workouts and insolvency matters, including the negotiation of standstill and forbearance arrangements. He has also been involved in complex formal bankruptcy and bankruptcy protection proceedings under both the Companies Creditors Arrangement Act and the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act, and has represented clients on numerous receivership, judicial and private powers of sale and foreclosure matters.
Awards & Recognition
- Recognized in The Legal 500 Canada for his expertise in the practice area of Real Estate
- Recognized in The Best Lawyers in Canada in the field of Real Estate Law
Professional Involvement
Memberships
- Commercial Mortgage Securities Association
- National Association of Industrial and Office Properties (Toronto NAIOP)
Community Involvement
- Beth Tzedec Congregation, Past President
- Advisory Board, Program in Real Property, Schulich School of Business, York University
International Board of Governors of United Synagogues of Conservative Judaism
Teaching Engagements
- Former part-time lecturer, MBA programme, Schulich School of Business, York University
Representative Matters
Advised the Ontario Ministry of Economic Development, Job
Creation and Trade on all aspects of its winning bid for Volkswagen’s first
overseas gigafactory, a several-billion-dollar investment that is one of the
largest in Canadian history.
Represented private corporations in respect of their acquisition, financing and negotiation of management and franchise agreements in connection with the following hotels and mixed-use projects:
(a) Pinestone Resort, Haliburton, Ontario
(b) London Westin Hotel, London, Ontario
(c) Peterborough Square, Peterborough, Ontario (a mixed-use project containing a hotel and shopping centre)
(d) Hotel Citadelle, Montreal, Quebec
(e) Toronto Airport Marriott Hotel, Toronto, Ontario
(f) Citadel Inn, Halifax, Nova Scotia
(g) Radisson Hotel, King Street, London, Ontario
Represented Skyline International Development Inc. in connection with its acquisition and financing of Intrawest ULC’s ownership and management interests in the existing commercial retail space and development lands located in Blue Mountain, a resort village near Collingwood, Ontario.
Under the retail portion of the transaction, Skyline acquired 50% of existing commercial retail space within the Blue Mountain Village, which it will manage. In addition, Skyline will also manage the remaining 50% of the Village’s retail space. Skyline also acquired the land to build an additional 20,000 square feet of retail space within the Village.
In the residential portion of the transaction, Skyline acquired all remaining developable land in and adjacent to the Village, planning to double the Village’s current residential and condo-hotel footprint.
Selected Speaking Engagements
Speaker, "Borrower Defaults on a Mortgage Loan: The Rights and Remedies of the Lender and the Borrower’s Response," Aird & Berlis LLP Financial Difficulties Seminar, June 2009.
Panellist, "Mezzanine and High Ratio Financing: To What Extent is This Market Now Growing?" 2009 RealCapital Conference, February 2009.
Speaker, "PPSA for Real Estate and Business Buyers - Best Practices for Secured Transactions Involving Personalty and Realty," The Law Society of Upper Canada, November 2008.
Speaker, "Managing the Legal Aspects of Financing," Federated Press, 2nd Construction Financing Course, May 2008.
Speaker, "Managing the Legal Aspects of Financing," Federated Press, Real Estate Equity & Debt Financing Course, December 2007.
Speaker, "Recent Developments in Real Property and Conveyancy Law," Ontario Bar Association's 2006 Annual Institute of Continuing Legal Education, January 2006.
Panellist, "Why Apartments Continue to be Good Assets to Finance and Mortgage," RealCapital Seminar, Toronto, February 2005.
Speaker, "New Trends in Debt Financing" at Insight's Commercial Real Estate in Ontario Conference, May 2003.
Moderator, "Title Insurance, Terrorism Insurance Coverage and Related Topics," at Real Finance Seminar, Toronto, February 2002.
Speaker, "Real Estate Investments: Institutional Owners and their Professional Advisors Beware!" Strategy Institute's Y2K Investment Industry Final Quarter Update Conference, August 1999.
Speaker, "Current Real Estate Practice Issues," Canadian Bar Association's Annual Institute, January 1996.
Speaker, "Critical Issues in Powers of Sale," Insight Conference, March 1991.
Selected Publications
Co-author, "Amendments to Regulation Banning Canadian Foreign Home Buyers Released," Aird & Berlis LLP, March 30, 2023.
"To Enforce or Forbear: A Lesson in Keeping Your Powder Dry," Aird & Berlis LLP Real Estate Law Newsletter, March 2010
"Choosing the Right Remedies to Enforce Security," Aird & Berlis LLP Real Estate Law Newsletter, December 2008
"Bill S-19," Aird & Berlis LLP Banking Law Alert, Winter 2005
Author, "Breaking Down the Borrower Barriers: Understanding the keys to unlock real estate from the Mortgage Loan," Canadian Apartment Magazine, June 2005
"Unlocking Your Real Estate from the Conduit Loan," Aird & Berlis LLP Real Estate Law Newsletter, Spring 2005
Author, "Understanding the Choices That Lead to Obtaining the Right Financing," Canadian Apartment Magazine, November/December 2004
Insights
Education
- Admitted to the Manitoba Bar, 1979
- JD, University of Manitoba, 1978
- LLL, Universite de Montreal, 1977
- BA (Hons, with Distinction), Political Science, Sir George Williams University (now Concordia University), 1972