overview
William (Bill) Rowlands is a partner in the Real Estate Law Group in the Toronto office. He has been a partner with the firm since 1988.
Bill is a recognized leader in commercial leasing. His practice involves a full spectrum of commercial real estate transactions including leasing, acquisitions and dispositions of property. Bill represents participants on all sides of real estate transactions, including property owners and managers, landlords and tenants, purchaser and vendors.
His professional activities include:
- Co-Chair of the Law Society of Upper Canada annual Six-Minute Commercial Leasing Lawyer Program
- Editor for O'Brien's Encyclopedia of Forms, Division IV, Leases, Canada Law Book, 2002, updated annually, a major Canadian legal resource book on leases
Bill also speaks at various business and professional conferences on topics related to retail, industrial and commercial leasing. He also served as resource counsel on the lease committee of Realpac (Real Property Association of Canada), a leading Canadian real estate organization.
Representative Matters
- Acted for subsidiary of Brookfield Office Properties in connection with the lease to Deloitte Management Services LP, as lead tenant, of approximately 420,000 square feet of the new 44-storey Bay Adelaide East office tower.
- Acted for Manulife Real Estate in the purchase of the office building complex known as York Mills Centre from Ivanhoe Cambridge.
- Acted for Manulife Real Estate in a forward purchase and sale arrangement with Broccolini Construction and Canderel Management in respect of Manulife's purchase of the new Export Development Canada headquarters.
- Acted for BMO Bank of Montreal in an agreement with a subsidiary of First Gulf Corporation and Sun Life Financial to be the anchor tenant in a LEED-certified office building, First Meadowvale Corporate Centre in Meadowvale.
- Acted for a major Canadian landlord in related leasing transactions with a major tenant at numerous locations across the county.
- Acts for a number of retailers in connection with their leasing and property matters including a financial institution, a petroleum retailer, a major electronics retailer and a major home furnishings retailer.
- Is retained on an ongoing basis by a number of landlords in connection with office, retail and industrial leasing.
Presentations
Workshop Leader
Please Release Me: The Importance of Fitting the Release and Indemnity Pieces Seamlessly with Insurance
Implications of Development Activity on Existing Assets Including Demolition and No Build Clauses (Rapid Legal Roundtable)
Panelist
Professionalism and Ethics in a Commercial Leasing Practice
Good Faith and Other Recent Case Law
Workshop Leader
Legal, Technical & Financial Issues That Can Arise During the Term of the Lease
Roundtable Leader
Recent Case Law, Implications for Leasing
Legal Conflicts
The Increasing Use of RFPs
Executive Update for Owners and Tenants
Conflicts of Interest
Assignment, Subletting
Law For Non-Lawyers
Conduct Unbecoming - the Doctrine of Estoppel and Estoppel Certificates
Negotiating and Amending Key Lease Terms
Key Leasing Trends and Issues in Today's Retail Market
Knowledge, Actual Knowledge, The Best Of Your Knowledge - A Little Knowledge Can Be A Dangerous Thing
Green Leases, Carbon Credits & Shared Environmental Objectives: How are they changing lease terms and negotiations?
The Turning Tide – Defaults and Remedies
All Steamed-Up About Boiler Plate: Drafting to Avoid Pitfalls
Bankruptcy Update for the Coming Recession
Commercial Real Estate Leases
Older Buildings: Special Issues
What U.S. and Foreign Parent Companies are Demanding in Leases for Their Canadian Operations
Pad Site Leases - Special Concerns and Issues
Are Gross and Semi-Gross Leases Coming Back in the Office Market
Renewals and Extensions
The Shortest Possible Lease: The Venerable Dye & Durham 650
Risk Management, Insurance and Environmental Benchmarks in Leasing
It's No Use - Setting Boundaries in the Use Clause
The Annotated Retail Lease
Strategies, Issues, Trends and Practices in Office, Retail and Industrial Leasing, The Use of a Standard Office Lease: Will it Ever Happen?
Remastering Your Lease Masters
Creating the Standard Office Lease - CIPPREC's Attempt
Ten Common Pitfalls in Commercial Leasing
Documenting the Lease Deal
Publications
Enforcing an Offer to Lease – Essential Elements and No Fundamental Breach
The Timely Exercise of Lease Renewal Rights
Fundamental Breach of Commercial Leases
Drafting, Exercising and Protecting Lease Renewal Rights
A Lease Estoppel Certificate Constituting the Exercise of a Renewal Right
Being Precise in Exercising Renewal Rights
Waivers of subrogation in leases – the latest chapter
The overholding provision in a commercial lease
Charging management fees or administration fees to tenants under a net or carefree lease
Grappling with Insurance Clauses
Partnerships and Trusts Handle with Care
Subleases: Seeking the Landlord's Consent
Tenant Transfers: Navigating the World of Subleasing, Assignment and Lease Takeovers
Estoppel: Losing Your Contractual Rights
Special Risks of Being a Subtenant (and Some Suggestions to Mitigate These)
Agreements to Lease, Letters of Intent and Term Sheets
Precedent Offer to Lease and Precedent Shopping Centre Lease
Toronto Land Transfer Tax
Drafting and Protecting Renewal Rights
Retail Out-Parcel Leases
Requirements for a Binding Agreement to Lease
Commercial Leases: What's the "Use"?
Fixed CAM/Gross Leases – An Emerging Trend?
Lease Guarantees: An Update
Tenant Obligations on Leaving a Leased Property
What's the Use? Overlapping Retail Uses
Creating the CIPPREC National Standard Office Lease
News
71 McMillan Lawyers Named in the 2020 Edition of Best Lawyers in Canada
60 McMillan Lawyers Recognized in the 2019 Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory
32 McMillan lawyers recognized in Who's Who Legal Canada 2018
65 McMillan Lawyers Named in the 2019 Edition of Best Lawyers in Canada
McMillan lawyers well-represented in the 2018 Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory
33 McMillan lawyers recognized in Who's Who Legal Canada 2017
Margaret McNee recognized as Mutual Funds Lawyer of the Year, along with 58 McMillan Lawyers in the 2018 Best Lawyers in Canada Report
McMillan lawyers well-represented in the 2017 Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory
McMillan lawyers recognized in Who's Who Legal: Canada 2016
McMillan lawyers well-represented in the 2016 Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory
60 McMillan lawyers recognized in the 10th Edition of The Best Lawyers in Canada
McMillan lawyers are well represented in the 2015 Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory
McMillan lawyers recognized in the 2015 Best Lawyers in Canada
McMillan lawyers are well represented in the 2014 Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory
49 McMillan lawyers recognized in the 2014 Best Lawyers in Canada
Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory 2013 Recognizes 44 McMillan Leading Practitioners
Ten McMillan lawyers listed in the 2013 Lexpert®/American Lawyer Guide to the Leading 500 Lawyers in Canada
47 McMillan lawyers recognized in the 2013 Best Lawyers in Canada
Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory 2012 Recognizes 39 McMillan Leading Practitioners
Eight McMillan lawyers featured in the 2012 LEXPERT/American Lawyer Guide to the Leading 500 Lawyers in Canada
50 McMillan Lawyers recognized in the 2012 Best Lawyers in Canada
Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory 2011 recognizes 35 McMillan leading practitioners
William Rowlands discusses the issues with subleasing in a Canadian Property Management V-Report
Education
- Queen's University, LLB - 1982
Year Of Call
- Called to the Ontario bar - 1984
Practices
commercial real estate
leasing
real estate acquisitions and divestitures
real estate financing
environmental regulation
Industries
commercial real estate
retail
banking
service industries
Directorships and Professional Associations
- International Council of Shopping Centres
Awards & Rankings
- Recognized by Best Lawyers in Canada (2020) as a leading lawyer in the area of Real Estate Law
- Recognized in the 2019 Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory as a Consistently Recommended lawyer in the area of Property Leasing
- Recognized in the 2018 Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory as a Consistently Recommended lawyer in the area of Property Leasing
- Listed in The Best Lawyers in Canada 2011 - 2019 as a leader in Real Estate Law
- Received 2017 DistinguishedTM Rating from Martindale-Hubbell
- Listed in Who's Who Legal: Canada 2016 - 2018 as a leader in Real Estate Law
- Listed in the Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory 2010 - 2017 as a leading practitioner in Property Leasing