Chris Bennett

Practice Areas

Chris Bennett is Chair of the National Banking and Financial Services practice group at Osler. He also leads the firm’s Project Finance team in Toronto.

Chris’ practice focuses on financial services with an emphasis on public-private partnerships, project finance, infrastructure and structured finance. Chris has extensive experience acting for domestic and international lenders, developers, equity sponsors and other participants in connection with complex P3 and infrastructure transactions and project financings across Canada. He has led major transactions in a variety of industry sectors and asset classes, including social infrastructure, transportation, electricity and renewable energy. Chris has closed more than 50 P3 projects over his career, and his experience includes a number of innovative, first-of-type public private partnerships, including the first major healthcare P3 transaction in Canada to reach financial close, the first Canadian domestic monoline wrapped bank financing and the first combined bank-bond transportation project. He has represented all major categories of project finance lenders in the Canadian market, including domestic and foreign banks, private placement investors and bond underwriters.

Career

Chris has spoken and written extensively on matters relating to project finance and public-private partnerships, including developing two courses on public private partnerships at the University of Toronto Faculty of Law, where he has been an adjunct faculty member since 2007.

Professional Memberships

Canadian Bar Association, Ontario Bar Association, and Canadian Infrastructure Law Forum, 2016 Steering Committee

Publications

Construction Law in Canada, contributing author, LexisNexis, May 2010.

Personal

Ontario, 2001

University of Toronto, LL.B.

Queen’s University, B.A. (Hons.)