Summary

BLG's Commercial Real Estate Leasing Group goes the extra mile to deliver proactive and practical service to clients on all matters relating to commercial leasing.

Our team of professionals have comprehensive knowledge and experience in this area and provide advice to landlords, tenants, lenders, governments and other interested parties on all aspects of leasing including, office, industrial, retail, mixed use, telecommunications, residential and mixed use condominium/strata, commercial condominium/strata, Crown lands, First Nations lands and ground leases amongst others.  Our professionals routinely advise parties on leasing matters ranging from simple commercial issues to advising on some of the most complicated leasing related transitions in Canada.

BLG's Commercial Real Estate Leasing Group work in co-operation with our other practice areas including environmental law, construction law, property tax, municipal and zoning law, ensuring the delivery of savvy advice to our clients. Our consistent experience in commercial leasing keeps us at the forefront of the market.  We are your one stop source for legal advice.

Publications

  • "BLG National Leasing Centre," BLG Publication, November 2018.
  • "Rights of Landlords in Bankruptcy – May Be More than Expected," ICSC Shopping Centre Legal Update, November 2011.
  • "Enforceable or Unenforceable? That is the Question: A Landlord's Right to Terminate After Receiving a Request to Assign," ICSC Shopping Centre Legal Update, November 2010.
  • "Renewal Clauses in Commercial Leases: No Formula for Renewal Rent, No Problem," ICSC Shopping Centre Legal Update, November 2009.
  • "Are Continuous Operation Clauses in Leases Enforceable?" ICSC Shopping Centre Legal Update, November 2008.
  • "Assignment and Subletting: The Perils of Ignoring Tenants," BOMA Publication, November/December 2008.

Representative Work

  • Development of the new Montréal campus of BCE, with one of our Group's members acting as lead lawyer. This project is one of the largest and most prestigious single-tenant developments to have been built in Montréal during the past 30 years. The new campus comprises an approximate total area of 800,000 square feet and will be the workplace for approximately 4,000 BCE employees.
  • Ground leases and construction agreements with the City of Toronto on behalf of a private corporation for a mixed-use redevelopment.
  • Project leader in facilitating the transfer of over 300 properties and all leases when Bell Nordiq Group privatized the Bell Nordiq Income Fund.
  • Negotiated and finalized – on behalf of developers – franchise and license agreements with international hotel chains to be developed in Alberta and Ontario.
  • Negotiated and prepared switching facility leases, point of presence site agreements, municipal access agreements and tower agreements – on behalf of telecommunications providers.
  • Acted for tenants in several very significant long-term multi-floor head office leases with building naming rights in both Vancouver and Calgary
  • Acting nationally for one of Canada's largest retailers in respect of all of such retailer's leasing activities.  Such transactions routinely involve complex long term ground leases, leases in respect of complex mixed use developments and leases involving governmental agencies and First Nations.
  • Acting for electricity generation and distribution clients regarding the negotiation and finalization of ground leases for various wind and solar projects.
  • Acting for the Hospital for Sick Children in respect of all leases, including negotiation of offers, preparation of standard documents, negotiation of leases, estoppel certificates, subleasing and landlord remedies.
  • Acting for the Professional Engineers of Ontario Association in respect of all leasing including negotiation of offers, creating a standard green lease and negotiation of leases.
  • Acting for AGF Management Limited on all leasing and subleasing.
  • Acting for Southlake Regional Health Centre on all leasing and licensing.

Rankings & Recognitions

The Commercial Real Estate Leasing Group and its members are recognized in:

  • The 2018 (and since 2017) edition of The Canadian Legal Lexpert® Directory.