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A strategic advisor with extensive industry expertise, Bruce helps clients navigate all aspects of their construction projects

Bruce Karn is a partner in McCarthy Tétrault’s Business Law Group and Construction Group based in Toronto.  His transactional construction practice focuses on advising owners and developers on some of Canada’s largest and most complex infrastructure projects.

Bruce’s experience as senior in-house counsel for a major construction firm gives him a unique understanding of the internal realities that in-house departments face. His insight into contractors’ perceptions of key project risks enables Bruce to navigate and quickly resolve complex issues that clients often must contend with.

Bruce advises clients from green power generation (including nuclear and renewables), industrial, commercial, and institutional construction industries. He guides clients through all aspects of their construction projects from inception and selection of contracting strategy, to drafting and negotiating construction and ancillary contracts, to advising them through contract administration. Having spent more than a decade on both sides of the negotiation table, Bruce excels at negotiating and securing the best possible outcomes for clients.

Bruce is a frequent panelist at CPD programs and speaks on topics such as the impact of technology on the construction industry and how supply chain disruptions are affecting the industry. He is licensed as a Professional Engineer (P.Eng.) in Ontario, and was a member of the Prompt Payment Committee of the Ontario General Contractors Association. In 2022, Bruce was a member of the in-house team that was named Construction, Infrastructure and Transportation Law Department of the Year at the Canadian Law Awards. 

Bruce obtained his Bachelor of Applied Science, Engineering Science (Aerospace) in 2001 from the University of Toronto, and his JD from Queen’s University in 2009. He was called to the Ontario Bar in 2010.

Speaking engagements

• Instructor, “Law, Technology and Construction”, The Osgoode Certificate in Construction Law Program (2019 - 2023)
• Instructor, “Managing Interface and Integration Risks”, The Osgoode Certificate in Public-Private Partnership (P3) Law and Practice in Canada (2023)
• Speaker, “Supply Chain Disruptions”, Pacific Business & Law Institute, Construction Projects in 2022: Global Disruptions, Local Solutions (2022)
• Speaker, “State of the Industry: Contractors”, Pacific Business & Law Institute, Construction Projects in 2023: Confronting the Challenges (2023)
• Panelist, “Technology and its Role in Changing the Industry”, Ontario Bar Association | Professional Development, Construction Law Symposium: The  Changing Practice of Construction Law in Ontario (2022)
• Panelist, “How Project-Related Technology is Changing the Industry”, Canadian College of Construction Lawyers 22^nd Annual Conference (2019)
• Panelist, “Practitioners Panel – How Do They Tackle Issues?”, Ontario Bar Association | Professional Development, Prompt Payment and Adjudication: Are You and Your Clients Ready? (2019)
• Panelist, “Live Demonstration: Mock Adjudication”, Osgoode Professional Development, Ontario’s New Construction Act: Adapting to the New Prompt Payment & Adjudication Regimes (2019)
• Panelist, “Construction Law Update: Legal Aspects of Construction Innovations”, The Buildings Show (2019)
• Panelist, “Construction Law Update: The Latest Cases Affecting Your Projects”, The Buildings Show (2018)