Geza R. Banfai

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Geza Banfai is a widely respected lawyer by the legal community and across the construction and infrastructure sector. Geza represents stakeholders at every level of the construction pyramid, including lenders and owners (public and private), general contractors, subcontractors, material suppliers and workers. He also works with design, architectural and engineering professionals as well as testing consultants. Gaza is recognized by Chambers Canada as a leading lawyer in the area of construction law.

Geza’s vast experience includes the preparation of domestic and international construction contracts, pre-bid, bid and project alliancing, the development of domestic and international joint venture and teaming agreements, and the negotiation and preparation of integrated team and public-private partnership (P3) contracts. He also provides advice on procurement issues, and representation on contract claims and disputes, construction liens, trust claims, lien priority disputes, bond claims, claims involving the negligence of design professionals, and occupational health and safety (OHSA) issues.

Known for providing practical and sound business advice, Geza is sought out by a variety of clients on diverse projects that include residential properties, nursing and retirement homes, retail and office commercial buildings, hospitality and gaming facilities, office / warehouse developments, manufacturing facilities, schools, theatres, power generating stations (nuclear, hydro, fossil, natural gas and wind power), pipelines, airports, automotive facilities, medical research facilities and hospitals.

Geza is a frequent presenter and prolific writer on a variety of construction and infrastructure-related issues. He was instrumental in establishing the Osgoode Construction Law Certificate Course conducted by Osgoode Professional Development (Osgoode Hall Law School) and serves as the program director for this highly successful program.

Expertise

Industries

Construction & Infrastructure

Practices

Litigation & Dispute Resolution

Representative Matters

Represented a major Canadian general contractor for many years in connection with various legal matters, including the development, and later development and expansion, of a casino (including the resolution of claims and disputes), and advising on AFP proposals for the development of a courthouse and an educational facility.
Represented a major Canadian mechanical/electrical trade contractor for many years in connection with various agreements, including the negotiation of the contracts for the fit-out of a complex medical research facility using the integrated team approach, the development of a wind farm facility in Southwestern Ontario, a number of joint venture and alliancing arrangements, and a substantial P3 for the development of three hospitals in British Columbia.
Facilitated the achievement of consensus between two industry associations, representing general contractors and trade subcontractors respectively, for the submission of a joint proposal to the Ontario government concerning proposed prompt payment legislation.
Led a team of counsel representing an EPC contractor in the resolution of claims in excess of $20M arising in connection with the design and construction of two solar farm projects in Ontario.
Led a team of counsel representing a U.S.-based EPC contractor in the successful defence of claims in excess of $10M arising in connection with the construction of a gas-fired cogeneration facility in Ontario.
Led a team of counsel representing a U.S.-based general contractor in the resolution of various multi-million dollar claims arising in connection with the design and construction of a paint shop for a Big 3 automotive manufacturer in Ontario.
Represented one of Canada’s largest general contractors in the successful negotiated resolution of claims arising in connection with the cancellation of a politically high-profile contract for the design and construction of a bridge in Toronto.
Represented a major Canadian food retailer in the resolution of numerous liens and other problems arising over more than a dozen ongoing projects in consequence of the insolvency of the general contractor it had retained.
Represented a church providing procurement, contractual and claims avoidance and resolution advice in an ongoing multi-phase development of a Cathedral/community centre complex in Toronto.
Lead counsel representing a pipe fitting trade contractor in the prosecution of a lien claim in excess of $10 million in connection with the construction of a cogeneration facility in Ontario.
Ongoing general business advice for various clients, including having served on the board of the Canadian subsidiary of a prominent U.S. design-build firm and serving as an advisor to the management of a prominent Ontario trade contracting firm, as well as board-level, committee and task force participation in the Canadian Construction Association, Consulting Engineers of Ontario, Ontario General Contractors Association and the Toronto Construction Association.

Speaking Engagements

Saving the Troubled Project Workshop, The Osgoode Certificate in Construction Law (Fall), Osgoode Hall Law School– Professional Development, Program Facilitator with Jason J Annibale, Howard Krupat, Andrea Lee, and Jeremy Rankin

November 7, 2023

The Decision-Makers’ Speak! View from the Bench, The Osgoode Certificate in Construction Law (Fall), Osgoode Hall Law School– Professional Development, Moderator

November 7, 2023

Key Terms in Construction Contracts, The Osgoode Certificate in Construction Law (Fall), Osgoode Hall Law School– Professional Development, Speaker

November 2, 2023

Collaborative Contracting: Integrated Project Delivery (IPD), The Osgoode Certificate in Construction Law (Fall), Osgoode Hall Law School– Professional Development, Speaker

November 1, 2023

The Osgoode Certificate in Construction Law (Fall), Osgoode Hall Law School – Professional Development, Co-Program Director with Geza Banfai and Howard Krupat

November 1, 2023

The ‘New Normal’ for the Mechanical Contractor – How the Legal Landscape has Changed, 2023 MCAC Annual National Conference, Co-Speaker with Jason J. Annibale

October 20, 2023

Saving the Troubled Project Workshop, The Osgoode Certificate in Construction Law (Fall), Osgoode Hall Law School – Professional Development, Program Facilitator with Jason Annibale, Howard Krupat, and Jeremy Rankin

October 28, 2022

The Osgoode Certificate in Construction Law (Fall), Osgoode Hall Law School – Professional Development, Co-Program Director with Jason Annibale and Howard Krupat

September 30, 2022

Annual Update: Ontario’s Construction Act - The Practical Guide to Navigating Key Risks & Obligations, Osgoode Professional Development, Program Chair

March 31, 2021

IPD: A Deeper Dive - A Virtual Conference, Presented by Integrated Project Delivery Alliance, Speaker

November 19, 2020

The Conflicted Expert: Reinforcing the Obligations of the Claims Consultant Canadian Bar Association, Jason J. Annibale, Geza Banfai, Rick Moffat (HKA), and Tina Cicchetti (Vancouver Arbitration/ Chambers & Arbitration Place)

October 13, 2020 VIEW PRESENTATION

Navigating Contracts/Bonding & Risk Relationships Post COVID-19, Ontario General Contractors Association Panelists: Jason Annibale, Geza Banfai, Gary Rodrigues (Marsh), Steven Gava (Marsh)

September 9, 2020 VIEW PRESENTATION

Construction and infrastructure law: the new landscape, Canadian Lawyer

June 25, 2020 VIEW PRESENTATION

Responses to Select Questions from the "The Impact of COVID-19 on the Construction Industry: TRC-Sadovod Answers Your Questions" Webinar

April 3, 2020 VIEW PRESENTATION

What's New And Challenging Across The Construction Sector, Grand Valley Construction Association workshop

October 2019 VIEW PRESENTATION

Ontario's New Construction Act, TRC-Sadovod Construction Counsel Series

April 11, 2019 VIEW PRESENTATION

The Construction Act - How Bill 142 has changed the Construction Lien Act – what you need to know, TRC-Sadovod Construction Counsel Series

March 2018 VIEW PRESENTATION

To date, has presented on well over 200 occasions to industry and professional audiences throughout Canada and abroad on a wide variety of construction industry and legal issues
Program Director and Lecturer: Osgoode Certificate Course in Construction Law (Osgoode Professional Development, Osgoode Hall Law School), annually since 2010
Sessional lecturer, University of Toronto, Department of Civil Engineering

News

Media Mentions

“MCAC 2023: Legal panellists present solutions for an era of change“, Daily Commercial News by ConstructConnect (October 24, 2023)
“OAA, OGCA aim for balance in CCDC supplements“, by Don Wall, Daily Commercial News (November 12, 2021)
“OGCA panellists discuss best practices for remaining profitable post COVID-19“, Daily Commercial News by ConstructConnect (September 16, 2020)
Inaugural Webinar Series, Ontario General Contractors Association (September 9, 2020)
“Cranes swing back into action as COVID-19 pandemic restrictions begin to loosen“, The Globe and Mail (May 6, 2020)
“Take care if deviating from CCDC standards: Lawyer“, Daily Commercial News (March 3, 2020)
“Construction liens under Ontario’s new Construction Act: Strategies for Navigating the New Regime” by Special to Ontario Construction News (December 16, 2019)
“Osgoode Professional Development: Osgoode Certificate in Construction Law 2019” by Special to Ontario Construction News (July 22, 2019)
“Ontario construction industry prepares for new prompt payment, adjudication rules expected to bring ‘profound’ change“, On-Site (June 11, 2019)
“Ontario construction lawyers keen for new adjudication regime“, Daily Commercial News (May 9, 2019)
“CCDC unveils ‘radically different’ IPD contract“, Daily Commercial News (February 19, 2019)
To date, 44 articles and mentions in Daily Commercial News

Rankings & Recognition

Recognized by Chambers Canada (2024) as a leading lawyer in the area of Construction
Recognized by Best Lawyers in Canada (2024) as a leading lawyer in the area of Construction Law
Recognized in the 2023 Lexpert Special Edition on Canada’s Leading Infrastructure Lawyers as an Infrastructure Lawyer
Recognized in the 2023 Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory as a Most Frequently Recommended Lawyer in the area of Construction Law and a Repeatedly Recommended Lawyer in the area of Infrastructure Law
Recognized in the 2023 Lexpert / American Lawyer Guide to the Leading 500 Lawyers in Canada: Construction
Listed in Who’s Who Legal: Global 2022 as a Thought Leader in Construction
Listed in Who’s Who Legal: Canada 2022 as a Thought Leader in Construction
Recognized by Chambers Canada (2023) as a leading lawyer in the area of Construction Law
Recognized by Best Lawyers in Canada (2023) as a leading lawyer in the area of Construction Law
Recognized in the 2022 Lexpert Special Edition on Canada’s Leading Infrastructure Lawyers as an Infrastructure Lawyer
Recognized in Who’s Who Legal: Construction Report 2022
Recognized in the 2022 Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory as a Most Frequently Recommended Lawyer in the area of Construction Law and a Repeatedly Recommended Lawyer in the area of Infrastructure Law
Recognized in the 2022 Lexpert / American Lawyer Guide to the Leading 500 Lawyers in Canada: Construction
Recognized by Chambers Canada (2022) as a leading lawyer in the area of Construction Law
Recognized by Best Lawyers in Canada (2022) as a leading lawyer in the area of Construction Law
Listed in Who’s Who Legal: Global 2021 as a leader in Construction
Listed in Who’s Who Legal: Canada 2021 as a leader in Construction
Recognized in the 2021 Lexpert Special Edition on Canada’s Leading Infrastructure Lawyers as a Infrastructure Lawyer
Recognized in the 2021 Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory as a Most Frequently Recommended Lawyer in the area of Construction Law and a Repeatedly Recommended Lawyer in the area of Infrastructure Law
Recognized by the Best Lawyers in Canada (2021) as a leading lawyer in the area of Construction Law
Listed in Who’s Who Legal: Canada 2020 as a leader in Construction and Government Contracts
Recognized by Chambers Canada (2021) as a leading lawyer in the area of Construction Law
Recognized in the 2020 Lexpert Special Edition on Canada’s Leading Infrastructure Lawyers as a Leading Infrastructure Lawyer
Recognized in the 2020 Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory as a Most Frequently Recommended lawyer in the area of Construction Law and a Repeatedly Recommended lawyer in the area of Infrastructure Law
Recognized in the 2020 Lexpert / American Lawyer Guide to the Leading 500 Lawyers in Canada: Construction
Listed in Who’s Who Legal: Canada 2019 as a leader in Construction and Government Contracts
Recognized in the 2019 Lexpert/ROB Infrastructure – Special Edition as one of Canada’s Leading Infrastructure lawyers
Recognized by Chambers Canada (2020) as a leading lawyer in the area of Construction Law
Recognized by Best Lawyers in Canada (2020) as a leading lawyer in the area of Construction Law
Recognized in the 2019 Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory as a Most Frequently Recommended lawyer in the area of Construction Law and Repeatedly Recommended lawyer in the area of Infrastructure Law
Listed in Who’s Who Legal: Government Contracts 2019 Guide among the world’s leading contracts lawyers
Recognized in the 2019 Lexpert / American Lawyer Guide to the Leading 500 Lawyers in Canada: Construction
Listed in Who’s Who Legal Canada: 2018 as a leader in Construction
The International Who’s Who of Government Contracts 2018
Recognized in the 2018 Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory as a Most Frequently Recommended lawyer in the area of Construction Law and Repeatedly Recommended in the area of Infrastructure Law
Recognized by Chambers Canada 2019 as a leader in Construction Law
Recognized by Best Lawyers in Canada 2019 as a leading lawyer in the area of Construction Law
Chambers Canada 2018 – Construction – Canada
The Best Lawyers in Canada 2018 – “Lawyer of the Year” Toronto – Construction Law
Who’s Who Legal: Canada 2017 – Government Contracts
2017 Canadian Legal Lexpert® Directory: Most frequently recommended – Construction Law, Repeatedly recommended – Infrastructure Law
The Lexpert®/American Lawyer Guide to the Leading 500 Lawyers in Canada 2017 – Construction Law
Certified Specialist, Construction Law – Law Society of Upper Canada
The Best Lawyers in Canada 2017 – “Lawyer of the Year” Toronto – Construction Law
Chambers Canada 2017 – Construction – Canada
Lexpert® Special Edition on Canada’s Leading Infrastructure Lawyers 2016
Canadian Legal Lexpert® Directory 2016 – Construction Law
The Lexpert®/American Lawyer Guide to the Leading 500 Lawyers in Canada 2016 – Construction Law
Chambers Global – Construction – Canada, 2015
“Geza Banfai of TRC-Sadovod LLP is well regarded for his litigation capabilities as well as his expertise in contract formation. One source said: “He is very good at analyzing claims and giving practical advice. He has a really good sense of how projects are run and how disputes are resolved. He is good at high-level strategy conversations and good at steering matters to a conclusion.”
Who’s Who Legal 2014 – Public Procurement
Manufacturers, Suppliers and Services Award of Recognition 2012 – Canadian Construction Association
Donald P. Griffin, Sr. Construction Industry Achievement Award 2011 – Toronto Construction Association

Community Involvement

Chair, IPD Task Force, CCDC
Chair, CCDC 40 Revision Working Group, CCDC
Member, Editorial Advisory Board, Daily Commercial News (Reed Construction Data)

Directorships & Affiliations

Board of Directors, Canadian Construction Association
Fellow, Canadian College of Construction Lawyers
Member: Canadian Bar Association, Construction Law Section
Member: Forum on the Construction Industry, American Bar Association
Member: Society of Construction Law
The Law Society of Upper Canada (Ontario)
Toronto Lawyers Association

Education & Admissions

1978

Called to the Ontario bar

1976

LLB Osgoode Hall Law School

1973

BA University of Toronto

Publications

“Competing Claims for Construction Holdback – Whose Money Is It, Anyway?,” Co-authored with Jason Annibale, Donia Hashem and Anthony Labib, Construction Law Letter, Vol 40, pp 9-11 (September/October 2023)
“Legal: “The risks of scope creep (Part 1 of 2)” Co-authored with Patrick Pinho and Kailey Sutton, Canadian Consulting Engineer (February 2022)
“Indemnities and Limitations of Liability – What Every Contractor Should Know” Ontario General Contractors’ Association (January 2022)
“The Future of Construction Contracts: The Post-COVID-19 World,” Buildforce Magazine, Fall 2020 (October 2020)
“How to prepare for the post-COVID-19 world of construction,” Link2Build (April 2020)

Insights (10 Posts)View More

Competing Claims for Construction Holdback – Whose Money is it, anyway?

The Court reviews the application of trust claims to construction projects on Federal lands, and illustrates the importance of a carefully drafted contract.

Apr 1, 2023

Alberta’s Prompt Payment And Construction Lien Act In Force Since August 29, 2022: What You Need To Know (Consolidated)

Alberta’s Prompt Payment and Construction Lien Act in Force Since August 29, 2022: What You Need to Know (Consolidated)

Aug 31, 2022

Alberta’s New Prompt Payment and Construction Lien Act: What You Need to Know Before August 29, 2022 (Consolidated)

A Primer and Comprehensive Overview of Alberta’s New Prompt Payment and Construction Lien Act. What You Need to Know Before August 29, 2022 (Consolidated)

Apr 6, 2022

How to Prepare for the Post-COVID-19 World of Construction

What construction industry stakeholders can expect in construction post COVID -19.

Apr 20, 2020

Project Management Amid COVID-19 – The Triage

Best practices for construction project management during the COVID-19 pandemic, and other force majeure circumstances.

Apr 8, 2020

The Impact of COVID-19 on the Construction Industry: A Reference Guide to the Changed Landscape

Contractual clauses, Permits & Inspections, Health & Safety, Labour, Litigation, Arbitration & Court Procedures,
Limitation Periods, Liens & Holdbacks

Apr 3, 2020

The Impact of COVID-19 on the Construction Industry: TRC-Sadovod Answers Your Questions

This webinar will unpack and address the impacts of COVID-19 on the construction industry and how these impacts can be best managed.

Mar 31, 2020

Construction Law Seminar and Webcast: Ontario’s New Construction Act

Ontario’s new Construction Act is now in force – What does this mean for my business and what practices do I need to change?

Details

April 11, 2019 - 8:00 am to 9:45 am

Construction Law Seminar and Webcast

Learn more about the significant changes to construction law in Ontario and what impacts these changes will have on the construction industry.

Details

March 1, 2018 - 12:00 pm to 1:45 pm

Ontario Introduces Bill 142, Construction Lien Amendment Act, 2017 – It’s Much More Than Just Liens!

Ontario Introduces Bill 142, Construction Lien Amendment Act, 2017 – It's Much More Than Just Liens!

Jun 6, 2017

Deals & Cases (2 Posts)

Westbank’s Mirvish Village

Westbank Projects Corp. proposed an extensive redevelopment in Toronto’s iconic Bloor West/Annex neighbourhood at the former location of the landmark Honest Ed’s Department Store.

Sep 1, 2020

The Hospital for Sick Children: Project Horizon

Project Horizon is a significant campus redevelopment project being undertaken by SickKids in cooperation with the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care over the next decade in the heart of Toronto’s downtown core.

Sep 1, 2019