Representative transactions include advising:

• The purchaser on its acquisition of Bell Creekbank Campus in Mississauga, Ontario

• Pure Industrial Real Estate Trust on its purchase of multiple industrial buildings spread across Ontario and Quebec

• Granite REIT on its purchase of 92.15 acres of development lands in Brantford, Ontario for the development of a multi-phased business park comprising a total of approximately 1.7 million square feet of modern distribution and logistics space

• Granite REIT on purchase/leaseback transactions involving a light manufacturing facility and distribution facilities

• H&R REIT on its acquisition of Primaris Retail REIT and concurrent sale of a portfolio of Primaris properties to a consortium of purchasers led by KingSett Capital

• Canadian Pacific Railway Company on a real estate transaction in Ontario

• Fiera Properties Ltd., on behalf of Fiera Properties CORE Fund LP, in the acquisition of a 100% fee simple interest in four retail plazas

• Canadian pension fund and other investors on their respective acquisitions of signature office buildings in the Toronto downtown core totalling over C$400-million

• Standard Life plc on its C$4-billion sale of its Canadian business to Manulife

• H2O Power LP on its C$400-million private placement to obtain credit facilities secured by its interest in hydroelectric facilities in Ontario

• Canadian financial institutions in their implementation of online loan origination and renewal services, including the use of electronic signature and related technologies

• H&R REIT's C$2.75-billion acquisition of Primaris Retail REIT and agreement to sell portfolio of 18 Primaris properties to a consortium led by KingSett Capital for C$1.28-billion

• The Government of Canada on its C$1.4-billion sale and leaseback of portfolio of seven office properties across Canada, containing approximately 3.5 million square feet of space

• A pension fund on the real estate aspects of its acquisition of a portfolio of hydroelectric facilities in Ontario

• The developer/borrower on its acquisition, sale and financing of multi-family residential and office complexes and government buildings in several communities in the territory of Nunavut, Canada

• Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce on its C$1.1-billion disposition of an office portfolio in Toronto, Montréal, Vancouver and Edmonton, including the Commerce Court complex in Toronto

John is recognized as a leading real estate practitioner in the following publications:

• The Legal 500 Canada 2024 (Real Estate)

• The Best Lawyers in Canada 2024 (Real Estate Law)

• Chambers Canada: Canada's Leading Lawyers for Business 2024 (Real Estate)

• The Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory 2024 (Property Development)

• Who's Who Legal: Global 2023 (Real Estate)

• Who's Who Legal: Canada 2023 (Real Estate)

• Thomson Reuters Stand-out Lawyers 2021 – Independently Rated Lawyers (As nominated by senior in-house counsel)

John is the global chair of the Real Estate Practice Group at Lex Mundi, the world's largest network of law firms with over 160 member firms. He is the past chair of the American Bar Association (ABA) Real Property Section's Special Investors and Investment Structure Group and its International Investment in Real Estate Committee.

John regularly speaks at ABA and other industry events worldwide on cross-border real estate transactions, the Canadian real estate market and other issues of interest to industry leaders and participants. He has also spoken and presented papers on topics relevant to the real estate industry at MIPIM, the International Bar Association and the Law Society of Ontario.

John is an active member of the Canadian Bar Association and the National Association of Industrial and Office Properties (NAIOP).

Admitted to the Ontario Bar – 1999
LLB, University of Western Ontario – 1997
BComm, University of Toronto – 1994