Background

Doug Sanders is a partner in our Vancouver office. Doug was admitted to the Saskatchewan Bar in 1990 and the British Columbia Bar in 1999. He graduated from the University of Saskatchewan with a Bachelor of Laws in 1989 and a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering in 1986.

Doug is a Professional Engineer licensed in the provinces of Saskatchewan and British Columbia.

Doug is co-author of the text “Practical Law of Architecture, Engineering and Geoscience” (Second Edition: Pearson, 2010).

Areas of Practice

• Doug practises in the areas of public private partnerships, construction contracts (negotiation, drafting, and review), construction litigation, and insurance litigation.
• Provision of advice on insurance related professional defence matters (engineers, architects, insurance agents, lawyers).
• Acting as counsel in mediation and arbitration and as sole arbitrator and sole conciliator in construction disputes.
• Provision of advice, review, and drafting of documents concerning bank financings.

Rankings and Recognitions

• Recognized in the 2011 edition of Chambers Global - The World's Leading Lawyers for Business (Projects: PPP & Infrastructure)
• Selected by peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in Canada® 2012 (Construction Law)
• Recognized in the 2011 edition of PLC Which lawyer? (Construction) 
• Recognized in the 2011 Canadian Legal Lexpert® Directory (Construction Law)
• Fellow, Engineers Canada (nominated by both B.C. and Saskatchewan)
• McCannel Award for service to the Association of Professional Engineers of Saskatchewan

Professional Experience

• Preparation, negotiation, and review of contracts, both construction and general, including tendering and various forms of project delivery contracts.
• Preparation, negotiation, and review of PPP contracts, including the following:
  • Alberta Schools 2 – ($250 million) Lead counsel for design build joint venture (closed)
  • RCMP - Lead counsel for member of design build joint venture (closed).
  • Fort St. John Hospital – ($300 million) Lead counsel for design build joint venture (closed).
  • Golden Ears Bridge bridge and highway ($1.1 billion) – Lead counsel for the design build joint venture (closed).
  • Northwest Anthony Henday bridge and highway – ($1.4 billion) Lead counsel for design build joint venture (closed).
  • Alberta Schools – ($500 million) Lead counsel for design build joint venture (closed).
  • Surrey Outpatient Facility – ($200 million) Lead counsel for member of design build joint venture (closed).
  • Royal Jubilee Hospital Patient Care Centre – ($350 million) Lead counsel for lead member of design build joint venture (closed).
  • Water/Wastewater Treatment plants – Lead counsel for the concessionaire in respect of water treatment projects for Port Hardy, Lytton, and Sooke (closed).
  • Sea to Sky Highway bridge and highway ($600 million) – BLG acted for UK and French lenders to the concessionaire. Primary responsibility for design-build and operations contracts (closed).
  • E18 Grimstad – Kristiansand (Norway) bridge and highway ($500 million) - Lead counsel for the design build joint venture (closed).
  • Kicking Horse Canyon bridge and highway ($130 million) – Lead counsel for the design build joint venture (closed).
  • Calgary Ring Road bridge and highway ($650 million)– Lead counsel for the design build joint venture (closed).
  • Britannia Water Treatment plant ($27 million) – Lead counsel for the concessionaire (closed).
  • BART Extension (San Francisco) – Lead counsel for US design build joint venture, part of preferred proponent (process terminated).

Representative clients include Flatiron, Parsons, Bilfinger, Acciona, Graham, Bird, EPCOR, and a number of government agencies. References available on request.

• Preparation, negotiation, and review of infrastructure contracts, including the following:
  • Port Mann bridge and highway – ($2.46 billion) – Lead counsel for design build joint venture (closed).
  • ACCW Prison – Lead counsel for government owner (closed).
  • HWY 97 and Campbell Road Interchange – Lead counsel for First Nation (closed).
  • The Rise Mixed Use Commercial/Residential building – Lead counsel for private owner (closed).

Representative clients include Flatiron, Grosvenor and government agencies. References available on request.

Papers and Presentations

2010

• June 24, 2010 – Canadian Institute – Tercon Changing the Face of Tendering Law in Canada (presenter at conference)
• June 18, 2010 – Project Finance – PPP Roundtable (moderator at conference)
• June 10, 2010 – PBLI – Getting Paid in Tough Times (presenter at conference)
• April 9, 2010 – CLE – Construction Law 2010 (presenter at conference)
• March 2, 2010 – CLE – Tercon (presenter at conference)

2009

• June 23, 2009 – Project Finance – Western Canada Innovation Infrastructure Finance Forum (presenter at conference)
• June 10, 2009 – PBLI – Construction Law – Getting Paid in Tough Times (presenter at conference)
• April 29, 2009 – Construction Law Update – Construction Law Strategies for 2009: Risks Re-defined (presenter at conference)
• April 17 – CLE – Construction Law 2009 (presenter at conference)
• April 2, 2009 – Construction Superconference – Managing Risk and Maximizing Business Opportunities (presenter at conference)
• March 6, 2009 – CLE – Tendering Law 2009 (presenter at conference)
• January 27, 2009 – PBLI – Construction Contracts: Practical Guidelines to Prevent Costly Mistakes
• January 21, 2009 – Construction Superconference – Managing Risk and Maximizing Opportunities (presenter at conference)

2008

• November 18 & 19, 2008 – Canadian Institute - Managing Risks in Construction Contracts (presenter at conference)
• October 23, 2008 - Construction Law Primers – Construction Management Risk Management (presenter at conference)
• October 20 & 21, 2008 – Canadian Institute - Negotiating PPP Contracts (presenter at conference)
• October 3&4, 2008 – BLG Group mini retreat
• May 26, 2008 – Canadian Bar Association Construction Section – P3s (presenter at seminar)
• April 25, 2008 – CLE BC – Lets Talk Construction – Tendering (presenter at seminar)
• April 23, 2008 – client seminar – Construction Scheduling (presenter at seminar)
• April 15 & 16, 2008 – PBLI Construction Law Update (presenter at seminar)
• April 11, 2008 - CBA Construction Section – Contractual Allocation of Risk (presenter at seminar)
• April 2, 2008 - BLG 101 – Preparing For and Conducting a Trial – Finding and Instructing Experts (presenter at seminar)
• March 20, 2008 – Constructions Specifications Canada – CCDC 2008 (presenter at seminar)
• February 2008 – Lexpert Magazine – quoted with respect to BC construction boom and relationship to 2010 Olympics
• January 30, 2008 – Canadian Institute - Public Procurement – How to Create a Successful RFP (workshop leader)
• January 21, 2008 – Canadian Institute - Construction Superconference – Construction Contracts (workshop leader)

2007

• November 27 – Time Matters for BLG Toronto Seminar (presenter at seminar)
• November 21 – Canadian Institute P3 Learning Session (presenter at seminar)
• November 13 – Creating PPP Contracts (workshop leader)
• November 6 – Managing Risk in Construction Contracts (workshop leader)
• September 14 – Tendering CLE (presenter at seminar)
• September 13 –APEGBC Law Seminar (presenter at seminar)
• July 16 – Article for Construction Business “Foreseeing Unforeseen Conditions”
• May 24 – CSC Legal Challenges (presenter at seminar)
• February 9 - Construction Jeopardy CLE (co-chair and presenter at seminar)
• February 2 – UMA Tendering (presenter at seminar)
• February 1 - Building Codes in Contracts (presenter at seminar)
• February – Article - “Mediation Better than Arm Wrestling”
• January 30 - Procurement Law (presenter at seminar)
• January 3 – Quoted in National Post, Legal Post article on Golden Ears Bridge P3

2006

• December 11, 2006 - APEGBC Law Seminar (presenter at seminar)
• November, 2006 Article for the Legal Edge “How Many Mandatories do You Really Need”
• October 19, 2006 - Top 10 Risk Management Techniques (presenter at seminar)
• October 12, 2006 - BLG Procurement Law Seminar (presenter at seminar)
• September, 2006 - Article for Construction Business “The State of Tendering Law in Canada ”
• September 21, 2006 - Clauses You Love to Hate (presenter at seminar)
• September 7, 2006 - Client P3 presentation in Calgary (presenter at seminar)
• June 7, 2006 - Minimizing P3 procurement costs (presenter at seminar)
• May 30, 2006 - Letters of Assurance (presenter at seminar)
• May 8, 2006 - London Superconference – Highway and Bridge Projects (presenter at seminar)
• April 25, 2006 - Negotiating CCDC Contracts (presenter at seminar)
• March 1, 2006 - APEGBC Law Seminar (presenter at seminar)
• February 8 - BLG Vancouver; topic: Alternative Project Delivery Methods (presenter at seminar)
• February 8 - Buildex Vancouver, topic: Fast Track Construction Projects (presenter at seminar)
• February 1 - BLG Toronto Construction Seminar; topic: Fairness Monitoring (presenter at seminar)
• January 30/31 - Canadian Institute Procurement Conference; topic: minimizing pre-contract costs in P3's (presenter at seminar)
• January 23, 2006 APEGBC Law Seminar (presenter at seminar)

Professional and Community Activities

• Member, British Columbia and Saskatchewan Law Societies
• Member, Association of Professional Engineers of B.C. and Association of Professional Engineers of Saskatchewan
• Member, Construction Specifications Canada, Past Officer: Legal, Saskatoon Section; Past Officer, Vancouver Section
• Association of Professional Engineers of Saskatchewan, Past Chair, Registration Committee, and Professional Practice Exam Sub-Committee
• Canadian Engineering Qualifications Board, Past Member
• Emerging Sciences and Technology and Specialization Task Forces, Past Chair
• Canadian Engineering International Board, Past Member
• Canadian Bar Association, Past Chair, Saskatchewan Construction Law Section