Background

Jeff Vallis is the National Litigation Department Leader at Borden Ladner Gervais LLP and a partner in the Construction, Engineering, Surety and Fidelity Group, based in our Calgary office. He was admitted to the Alberta Bar in 1982, after graduating with his Bachelor of Laws from the University of Toronto Law School in 1981.

Jeff is a member of the BLG Public-Private Infrastructure Projects Group, the International Trade and Arbitration Group, and the International Construction Projects Group. He was named Queen's Counsel in 2004.

Areas of Practice

• Commercial litigation and arbitration, with an emphasis on construction and surety issues, the oil and gas industry, other industrial disputes, product liability and insurance defence.

Rankings and Recognitions

• Recognized in The 2011 Lexpert®/American Lawyer Guide to the Leading 500 Lawyers in Canada (Construction Law)
• Selected by peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in Canada® 2012 (Construction Law)
• Rated by Martindale-Hubbell
• Recognized in the 2012 edition of PLC Which lawyer? (Construction)
• Recognized in the 2011 Canadian Legal Lexpert® Directory (Construction Law)
• Recognized in the 2012 edition of The International Who's Who of Construction Lawyers
• Recognized in the 2013 edition of The International Who's Who of Business Lawyers (Construction)
• Recognized in Who's Who Legal: Canada 2011 (Construction)

Professional Experience

Jeff has experience before the various branches of the Alberta courts as well as before the Federal Court of Canada and the Supreme Court of Canada, but primarily before the Court of Queen's Bench of Alberta and the Alberta Court of Appeal. He has also appeared as counsel in the Saskatchewan Court of Queen's Bench, the Manitoba Court of Queen's Bench and the Manitoba Court of Appeal. Additionally, he has acted as counsel in a significant number of arbitration proceedings, and has served as an arbitrator and as a mediator.

• He offers experience in:
  • Construction litigation and arbitration, acting on behalf of owners, contractors, subcontractors, lenders and sureties.
  • Broad spectrum of commercial disputes, in areas as diverse as oil and gas production and distribution, oil and gas facilities, heavy oil extraction, telecommunications, licensing, gas supply contracts and stock manipulation.
  • Wide range of tort litigation, including product liability claims. Has acted in claims involving significant property losses or personal injury arising out of alleged negligence or breach of contract, primarily in the industrial sector.
• Representative reported decisions in which Jeff has been counsel include:
  • Tulsa Heaters Inc. v. Syncrude Canada Limited (2009), 86 C.L.R. (3d) 245 (Alta. C.A.) (upheld trial decision relating to changes in specifications)
  • Tulsa Heaters Inc. v. Syncrude Canada Limited (2008), 2 Alta L.R. (5 th)296 (Alta. Q.B.) (successfully prosecuted claim arising out of changes to piping specifications in heavy oil upgrader project)
  • Agrium Inc. v. Chubb Insurance Co. of Canada, [2007] 5 W.W.R. 530 (Alta. Q.B.) (successfully defended at trial a large claim against a fidelity bond)
  • Graham Construction and Engineering (1985) Ltd. v. LaCaille Developments Inc. (2006), 154 A.C.W.S. (3d) 1079 (Alta. Q.B.) (6 week trial dealing with delay claims, allegations of deficiencies and changes in scope of work)
  • NAC Constructors Ltd. v. Alberta Capital Region Wastewater Commission (2005), 144 A.C.W.S. (3d) 469 (Alta. C.A.) (upheld decision limiting the effect of discretion clauses in tender documents)
  • Westco Storage Ltd. v. BICC Canada Inc. (2005), 192 Man. R. (2d) 166 (C.A.) (upheld the summary dismissal of environmental claim based on Manitoba limitations legislation)
  • Bell ExpressVu Limited Partnership v. Rex et al (2002), 212 D.L.R. (4th) 1 (S.C.C.) (acted for intervenor in successfully challenging B.C.C.A. interpretation of Radio Communications Act)
  • Canada Post v. Goodfellas Delivery Inc. (2002), 322 A.R. 13 (Q.B.) (application to strike portions of a defence)
  • WIC Premium Television Ltd. v. General Instrument Corp. et al, [2001] 2 W.W.R. 431 (Alta. C.A.) (leading decision on the jurisdiction of the Alberta courts)
  • IMC Canada Ltd. v. Enron Canada Corp. (2001), 318 A.R. 62 (Q.B.) (application for interlocutory injunction)
  • National Bank of Canada v. Merit Energy Ltd. (2001), 294 A.R. 36 (Q.B.) (determination of rights in a bankruptcy proceeding)
  • Precision Drilling Corp. v. Matthews Equipment Ltd., [2000] 10 W.W.R. 498 (Alta. Q.B.) (leading decision on submission to arbitration)
  • Sheer et al v. Lee et al (2000), 263 A.R. 305 (Q.B.) (successfully resisted application to compel arbitration)
  • Wilson et al v. City of Medicine Hat et al (2000), 191 D.L.R. (4 th) 684 (Alta. C.A.) (struck the claim of employees alleging industrial poisoning)
  • Constellation Oil & Gas Ltd. v. Sunoma Energy Corp. (1999), 252 A.R. 177 (Q.B.) (successfully resisted an injunction application, seeking to enjoin the transfer of property)
  • Barclays Bank of Canada v. Liquidator of Canadian Commercial Bank (1999), 173 D.L.R. (4 th) 309 (Alta. C.A.) (overturned a trial court decision and obtained preferred status for a creditor)
  • Long v. Delta Catalytic Industrial Services Inc., [1998] 6 W.W.R. 792 (Alta. Q.B.) (wrongful dismissal trial)
  • Toronto-Dominion Bank v. Canada (Minister of National Revenue), [1996] 1 S.C.R. 963 (challenge to the super-priority conferred under the Excise Tax Act)
  • Gannon Bros. Energy Ltd. v. Alberta (Energy and Utilities Board) (1996), 178 A.R. 302 (C.A.) (successfully resisted appeal of AEUB ruling)
  • Khosla v. Alberta College of Physicians and Surgeons (1995), 174 A.R. 230 (C.A.) (appeal from disciplinary proceedings)
  • Gulf Canada Resources Ltd. v. Pembina Resources Ltd. (1994), 152 A.R. 74 (Q.B.) (application for interlocutory injunction)
  • Vesta Technology Ltd. v. Chem-Security (Alberta) Ltd. (1991), 50 C.P.C. (2d) 167 (Q.B.) (claim arising out of a failed incineration technology for disposal of PCB-contaminated material)
  • Porta Test Inc. v. Montenay Birwelco Inc. (1991), 123 A.R. 38 (Q.B.) (claim arising out of contract dispute on construction of Husky upgrader)
  • Shulist v. Hunt (1987), 78 A.R. 188 (Q.B.) (realtor's claim for commission)
  • Blair v. Merrill Lynch Canada Inc. (1987), 80 A.R. 65 (Q.B.) (professional negligence claim against broker)
  • Halluk v. Brown (1982), 41 A.R. 350 (Q.B.) (defamation trial)

Professional Activities

• Fellow, Canadian College of Construction Lawyers
• Fellow, Chartered Institute of Arbitrators
• Member, Western Canada Arbitrators' Round Table
• Member of the Advisory Board, Institute for Transnational Arbitration
• 1986-1999: Senior Instructor, University of Calgary Law School Trial Advocacy Program.
• 1984-1986: Executive, Construction Law Subsection of the South Alberta District of the Canadian Bar Association.
• 1984-1994: Member, Legislative Review Committee, a joint committee of the Canadian Bar Association and the Law Society of Alberta.
• Member, Canadian Bar Association and Calgary Bar Association.

Recent Publications and Presentations

• Jeffrey D. Vallis, Q.C., "Better Understanding the Arbitration Process", presented to the Canadian Bar Association, Alberta Branch, Commercial Real Property Section (Calgary, February 2012)
• Jeffrey D. Vallis, Q.C., “Leading Types of Claims in the Construction Industry”, presented at the 4th Construction Claims conference (Calgary, April 2011)
• Contributor to PLC Cross-Border Construction and Projects Handbook 2011-12 (London, April 2011)
• Jeffrey D. Vallis, Q.C., “Exclusion Clauses in the Construction Context” presented at Tercon: Changing the Face of Tendering Law in Canada (Calgary, June 2010)
• Jeffrey D. Vallis, Q.C., “Drafting Key Provisions in Procurement Documents”, presented at Tendering and Procurement conference (Calgary, May, 2010)
• Jeffrey D. Vallis, “Best Practices for Minimizing Financial Risk During a Construction Project”, presented to 18 th Annual Western Canadian Construction Superconference (Calgary, January, 2010)
• Jeffrey D. Vallis, Q.C., “In Defence of Yugraneft”, News and Notes from The Institute of Transnational Arbitration (Dallas, May 2009)
• Jeffrey D. Vallis, Q.C., “Welcome to Alberta … But Don't be Late”, Lexpert (Toronto, December 2008)
• Co-chaired (with Scott J. Hammel), Managing Risks in Construction Contracts conference (Edmonton, November 2008)
• Jeffrey D. Vallis, Q.C., “Construction Delay: A Couple of Current Legal Issues”, presented at Managing Risks in Construction Contracts conference (Edmonton, November 2008)
• Jeffrey D. Vallis, Q.C. and Patricia L. Morrison, “Resolving Construction Disputes: Is Arbitration Today's Answer?”, The Constructor 2009 (published by the Calgary Construction Association, November 2008)
• Jeffrey D. Vallis, Q.C., “Foreign Arbitral Awards Treated as Foreign Judgments under Alberta Limitations Law”, International Law Office (London, August 2008)
• Moderator, Recent Legal Developments in Construction Law panel discussion, Canadian Construction Association Annual Conference (Victoria, March 2008)
• Jeffrey D. Vallis, Q.C., “Limitation Periods”, Selected Articles and Case Commentaries on Canadian Law, (Toronto 2008)
• “Best Practices for Preparing for the Inevitable Slowdown” presented to the 16 th Annual Western Canadian Construction Superconference (Calgary, January 2008)
• Co-chaired (with William J. Kenny, Q.C.) Risk Management in Construction Contracts conference (Edmonton, November 2007)
• Jeffrey D. Vallis, Q.C., “Allocating Risk in Construction Contracts”, presented at both Risk Management in Construction Contracts conference (Edmonton, November 2007) and Toronto Construction Superconference (Toronto, November 2007)
• Construction Risk Management 2007, panel presentation (Calgary, April 2007)
• Jeffrey D. Vallis, Q.C., “Developments in Tendering Law - 2006”, presented to Canadian Construction Association Annual Conference (San Juan, March 2007)
• Highway and Bridge Infrastructure, panel presentation at International Construction Superconference (London, U.K., May 2006)
• Jeffrey D. Vallis, Q.C., Patricia L. Morrison and Joshua D.E. Cinnamon, “Discretion Clauses in Tender Documents: How Far Can They Go?”, and Jeffrey D. Vallis, Q.C., Patricia L. Morrison and Louise Lee, “Exclusion and Limitation of Liability”, both presented to Canadian Construction Association Annual Conference (Kona, March 2006)
• Guest Speaker, Law and the Construction Industry, two-day seminar presented by the Alberta Construction Association (Banff, February 2006)
• “Managing Risk through Contractual Means”, presented at Risk Management in the Construction and Energy Sectors conference (Calgary, January 2006)

Community Involvement

• Director, Hospice Calgary Society (2002-2011)
• Trustee and Vice-President, Canadian Athletic Foundation (1993–2010)
• Director and Vice-Chair, Recreation for Life Foundation (2002-2009)
• Co-chair, Hospice Calgary's Community Campaign (2008-2009)
• Member of the Executive Committee, University of Calgary Law School Fundraising Campaign (1999)