- Bio
- Awards & Recognition
- Professional Involvement
- Representative Matters
- Selected Speaking Engagements
- Education
Informed by over two decades of a unique combination of senior level in-house, law firm and private business experience, Paul brings a unique perspective to his public and private sector clients. He combines strong analytical skills with practical business acumen to resolve challenging problems. Prior to joining Aird & Berlis, Paul worked at Metrolinx, where he managed the agency’s largest infrastructure projects, claims and contracts. As Senior Legal Counsel, he identified and managed risk; drafted and negotiated complex infrastructure, consulting and large product/service agreements; and structured and drafted the associated procurement models and documents. On these projects, Paul developed strong skills in project management and organizing the input of stakeholders, including Project Managers, Technical and Engineering Consultants, and Utilities, Environmental, Finance and Procurement Advisors.
Paul has led negotiations with a wide range of sophisticated parties, including international infrastructure and construction companies and government representatives at the municipal, provincial and federal levels. He played a key role on 11 projects identified within Canada’s top 100 infrastructure projects, including Eglinton Crosstown Light Rail Transit, Finch West Light Rail Transit, Hurontario Light Rail Transit, Union Station Revitalization Project, Regional Express Rail Operator Procurement, Electrification, East Rail Maintenance Facility, Crosstown Tunnels (East and West) and the procurement, drafting and negotiation of vehicles (light rail vehicles for Eglinton, Finch and Hurontario LRTs, Diesel Multiple Units for Union Pearson Express, and heavy rail locomotives, bi-levels, boring machines and double decker buses).
Paul has negotiated a wide range of infrastructure, procurement, consulting and construction agreements, including Design-Build, Design-Bid-Build, Alternative Financing and Procurement, program management, consulting interface and the CCDC and CMGC variations of construction contracts. Paul has also advised on the development of new models for infrastructure delivery, such as Qualification-Based Selection, Alliance, Integrated Project Delivery, FIDIC and New Engineering Contract.
Paul has provided claims and dispute support on all types of infrastructure contracts and related matters. He has attended mediations, arbitrations and dispute review boards on some of the largest construction claims in Canada and has supported judicial reviews and court actions, including at the Court of Appeal. As a result of this expertise, the Attorney General’s task force invited Paul to participate in committee meetings to revise the Construction Act.
Paul has further experience advising various stakeholders in M&A, real estate, project finance and commercial transactions. Prior to his legal career, Paul completed an MBA and worked as a business consultant implementing project management, contract management, supply chain management, turn-around and cost savings strategies for businesses in various industries, including aerospace, hi-tech, manufacturing, food processing, hospitality and shipping.
Awards & Recognition
- Recognized in The Best Lawyers in Canada in the field of Construction Law
Professional Involvement
Director, Geneva Centre for Autism: Canada’s leading provider of services and education in the field of autism and mental health (2016-present)
Minor Hockey Coach: (Oakville and Hamilton)
Green/Arts Barn Project: Negotiate financing and development agreements to redevelop Wychwood TTC repair terminal into an arts community (2008)
Representative Matters
Advising Metrolinx as in-house counsel on the following infrastructure matters:
- Union Station Revitalization Project ($400 million)
- Regional Express Rail Operator Procurement and Electrification ($15 billion)
- Eglinton Crosstown Light Rail Transit AFP Project ($5 billion)
- East Rail Maintenance Facility AFP Project ($1 billion)
- Finch Light Rail Transit Project AFP Project ($1 billion)
- Hurontario Light Rail Transit Project ($1 billion)
- Crosstown East and West Tunnel Contract (Request to Qualify, Tender and General and Special Conditions) ($700 million)
- AFP Project developments for Cooksville, Stouffville, and 401 Tunnel ($300 million)
- DB and DBB (Request to Qualify, Request for Proposal and Contract) for Barrie Rail Corridor, Oakville Control Centre and Brampton Station ($400 million)
- Technical Advisor Consulting Contracts for LRTs, Electrification, and Regional Express ($700 million)
- Procurement of LRTs, DMUs, Bi-levels, and Coaches from Bombardier, Alstom, MPI, Sumitomo and Alexander Denis ($1.5 billion)
- Signalling Contracts for various corridors ($400 million)
Advising Metrolinx as in-house counsel on the following contract disputes re dispute Review Boards, Mediation, Arbitration, Negotiation, Court:
- Union Station Development - delivery delays, liens, termination
- Crosstown Tunnels - delivery delays, utility and environmental claims
- Various Occupational Health and Safety Act (Ontario) - issues related to constructors
- Willowbrook Maintenance Facility – contract termination and bonding claim
- Georgetown South and LRTs – injurious affection claims
- Construction and Consulting contracts - disputes related to award of contracts, interpretation of scope of work and performance
- Light Rail Vehicles – contract delays, judicial review, injunctions
- Union Pearson Express - vehicle and infrastructure integration
- Signalling Contract - delays and disruption claims
Other Infrastructure, Construction and Financing
- Advising 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.
- Advising Quinte Health Care and Infrastructure Ontario on the Quinte Health Care Redevelopment Project (BF)
- Advising Runnymede Healthcare Centre and Infrastructure Ontario on the Runnymede Healthcare Centre Redevelopment Project (BF)
- Advising Sudbury Regional Hospital and Infrastructure Ontario on the Sudbury Regional Hospital Redevelopment Project (BF)
- Advising St. Joseph’s Health Care and Infrastructure Ontario on the St. Joseph’s Health Care Redevelopment Project (BF)
- Advising Trillium Health Centre and Infrastructure Ontario on the Trillium Health Centre Redevelopment Project (BF)
- Advising Sault Area Hospital and Infrastructure Ontario on the Sault Area Hospital Redevelopment Project and continuous service arrangement for the Hospital (BF)
- Negotiation of construction contracts for Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, Fairmont Hotels & Resorts Inc., Westbank Developments, St. Michael’s Hospital, York University, St. Joseph’s Hospital and Macquarie
- Negotiation of supplier and subcontract agreements, crane swing agreements, outsourcing agreements, equipment leasing agreements and long-term leases, either as one-off agreements or in support of larger infrastructure and M&A transactions
- Counsel to Westmont Hospitality Inc. and Cadbridge Investors LP in its financing, refinancing and restructuring of various hotel properties across Canada with loan agreements in excess of $185 million
- Counsel to Fengate Capital Management Inc. in obtaining $163 million project financing for the Woodstock General Hospital DBFM Project
- Counsel to Fengate Capital Management Inc. in obtaining $180 million project financing for the Bluewater Health DB Project
- Counsel to Fengate Capital Management Inc. in obtaining $150 million project financing for the Henderson Health Sciences DB Project
- Counsel to Deutsche Bank, as lender, who provided financing to Omni by way of a $110 million term facility in its purchase of the nursing home portfolio of Abacus
- Counsel to Wentworth Technologies Ltd., as borrower, in its refinancing by way of a $78 million term facility for its Canadian, U.S. and European operations
- Counsel to The Toronto-Dominion Bank, as lender, which provided financing by way of a $50 million term facility to Retrocom REIT in its refinancing of its Canadian shopping mall portfolio
- Counsel to Royal Bank of Canada, as lender, which provided $67 million mezzanine financing to CREIT
- Counsel to Loblaws on the sale of its dairy business and return outsourcing agreement to Saputo Inc.($400 million)
Selected Speaking Engagements
"How to Effectively Manage and Prevent the Top Risks in Transit Projects: Revisiting the Risk Allocation Model" 7th Annual Urban Transit Infrastructure National Symposium, The Canadian Institute, 2021.
Contract Management, “Managing Disputes”, Canadian Corporate Counsel Association, 2015.
Contract Management, “When Good Contracts Go Bad”, Canadian Corporate Counsel Association, 2015.
“Injurious Affection”, Canadian Corporate Counsel Association, 2016.
“Construction Act Updates”, City of Brampton and Ministry of Transportation, 2019.
Education
- LLB, University of Windsor, 2002
- MBA, University of Toronto, 1996
- BA (Hons.), McMaster University, 1992