Background
Donald Pierce is counsel to the Construction, Engineering, Surety and Fidelity Group in the Toronto office of Borden Ladner Gervais LLP. He has practised commercial real estate, project finance and commercial law for over 30 years. In addition, he is a civil engineer and has a broad base of experience in representing governments regarding large scale procurements, privatizations and public/private infrastructure projects.
Rankings and Recognitions
ˇ Martindale-Hubbell AV® Preeminent™ 5.0 out of 5 Peer Review Rating
Professional Experience
Procurement, Public/Private Infrastructure Projects, Privatizations and Project Finance
Don was retained by the Province of Ontario to act on their behalf in connection with a $1 billion toll road project known as Highway 407, which is the first all electronic toll road in the world. He created a working model for large scale procurements and public/private infrastructure projects which were utilized in the Highway 407 project. Subsequently Don was retained by the Province of Ontario for the privatization and sale of Highway 407. Don also led the first design/build transaction for the Province of Ontario on the QEW widening project. In addition, Don has been retained (i) by the Province of New Brunswick to act on their behalf in connection with a 195 kilometre B.O.T. toll road between Fredericton and Moncton, Canada; (ii) to advise the Government of Turkey in connection with its U.S. $2 billion BOT Izmit Bay Crossing Project; (iii) by the Province of Ontario in connection with the financing of Teranet which is a public/private partnership for the electronic computerization of data in the Province of Ontario's land registry system; (iv) by the Province of Ontario in connection with the sale of the Province of Ontario Savings Office; (v) by the Province of Ontario in connection with the sale of the Government's shares in Teranet; (vi) by the Government of the Northwest Territories in connection with the Deh Cho Bridge Project; (vii) by the Region of Kitchener-Waterloo in connection with the proposed downtown LRT project; (viii) by the Province of Ontario as a negotiator for the Ministry of Health; ( ix) by Transport Canada and the Transportation Ministries/Departments of the Provincial and Territorial Governments of Canada in connection with the preparation of a detailed how-to guide on Innovative Financing and Procurement; and (x) by the Ontario Municipal Economic Infrastructure Financing Authority in connection with the legal authority in Ontario, Canada of various authorities and agencies to borrow funds for the purpose of implementing infrastructure projects. He was also the lead lawyer on two other major public/private infrastructure projects, the CBC Broadcast Centre Building and the Workers' Compensation Building, both located in the City of Toronto.
Construction Law
Don has extensive experience acting for owners and contractors on construction contracts, construction lien matters and general construction matters. He has chaired seminars and presented papers and speeches on negotiating construction contracts and related issues and has represented both owners and contractors in disputes arising out of construction contracts and related matters.
Land Development
Don has had a voluminous practice in all aspects of land development for large, medium and small clients, planned, drafted and negotiated contracts of all types relating to land development, analyzed and counselled developers on land development issues regarding all aspects of development of residential, commercial and industrial land.
Commercial Real Estate
Don has a large practice covering all aspects of commercial real estate acting for owners, lenders and tenants regarding commercial real estate projects, planned, drafted and negotiated commercial real estate contracts of every kind and type.
Don is the author of numerous articles on leasehold mortgaging, preconstruction agreements, avoiding and resolving disputes in construction contracts and generally regarding all aspects of public private partnerships and privatizations. Don recently wrote a paper on 'Demystifying the Process' of Public Private Partnerships, as well as a paper on 'The Latest in Delivery Methods in Canada.'