David Tournier Partner, Lawyer

David Tournier Partner, Lawyer

Bureau

  • Montréal

Phone number

514 878-5506

Bar Admission

  • Québec, 2006

Languages

  • English
  • French

Profile

Partner

David is a partner in the Business Law group, and his practice focuses on corporate finance.

He has extensive experience in private practice, in particular, bank financing, project financing, insolvency and private equity. He also acted as vice-president and corporate secretary of a large industrial project and advised many entities on governance issues.

More recently, he has represented start-up companies, multinationals and investors involved in engineering, green industrial projects and information technology.

David is passionate about the new technologies and financing transactions that make his clients' projects possible. He draws on the broad expertise he has acquired in renowned law firms and as a corporate executive to assist entrepreneurs, investors, directors and legal departments in a wide range of areas.

REPRESENTATIVE MANDATES

Bank Financing

  • Represented Rexel S.A., a French worldwide distributor of electrical equipment, in connection with the Canadian aspects of the €50 million unsecured bond issue in European markets.
  • Represented the Royal Bank of Scotland as agent and lender in accordance with a USD 350 million multi-currency credit agreement in connection with a debt restructuring of a global producer and distributor of electronic and visual animal identification systems.
  • Represented the Agent (CIBC) and lenders in a CAD 30 million syndicated loan of cash and potential corporate acquisitions of a leading engineering and construction firm in Canada.
  • Represented the Agent (National Bank of Canada) and lenders in the context of a CAD 175 million financing for the acquisition of an IT hosting company in the UK.
  • Represented Canadian Helicopters Limited, a Canadian helicopter transportation services company, in the NZD 154 million financing of its acquisition of the assets of a New Zealand company.

Public-Private Partnerships

  • Represented Groupe Nouveau Pont Île-aux-Tourtes Inc., a joint venture of Canadian and international shareholders, throughout the negotiation and the drafting of all agreements required for the hybrid debt and bonds financing of the design and construction of the new Île-aux-Tourtes bridge in Montreal, which forms part of the strategic road network supporting commercial trade.
  • Represented a banking syndicate in the context of a bid to finance the construction of the McGill University Health Centre in Montréal for CAD 1.3 billion.
  • Represented Seigneurie de Beaupré Wind Farms 2 and 3, a joint venture led by Boralex Inc. to build, finance, operate and maintain a CAD 725 million and 272M W wind farm, which received Project Finance International’s 2011 Award for Americas Renewables Deal of the Year.
  • Represented Concession A25 L.P., a joint venture led by Macquarie Infrastructure Partners, in connection with the operation of an automated-toll highway in the Montréal metropolitan area.

Mining, Energy and Recycling Projects

  • Represented Transition Energy Inc. of British Columbia in the negotiation and drafting of all agreements for the development of plants that convert wood waste into renewable natural gas.
  • Represented DF Canada Ltd., an engineering firm, in the negotiation and drafting of equipment purchase contracts for a graphene mining project in Quebec.
  • Represented Polystyvert Inc., a Quebec-based recycler of various polymers, in its negotiation of two joint development agreements with world leaders in the plastics industry.

Restructuring and Insolvency

  • Represented Abitibi Bowater Inc. (now Resolute Forest Products), a pulp and paper producer, in the context of its cross-border restructuring under applicable legislation in Canada and the United States.
  • Represented TQS, a private Quebec television network, in the context of its restructuring under Canadian federal legislation.
  • Represented a French company holding the copyright to the television program Tout le monde en parle, in connection with the bankruptcy of its Canadian agent.

LECTURES

  • “Financement + numérique dans 10, 20, 30 ans…,” Chaire Wilson, Université de Montréal, February 2021:
    Link to video

PUBLICATIONS

  • “FinTech and Banks: Review of a Revolution,” Canlii, September 2020: Link to article
  • “Industrial Projects:Three Milestones on the Road to Bankability,” Association of Corporate Counsel, June 2017: Link to article
  • “La transposition de la loi type dans l’ordre juridique canadien,” Service de la Formation Continue du Barreau du Québec, Volume 321, 2010
  • “Reorganization: a commercial concept juridicially defined,” Canadian Bar Review, November 2009
  • “Vente, donation et hypothèque d’actions,” JurisClasseur, Lexis Nexis, periodical updated annually since 2009
  • “Les mutations de l’obligation,” JurisClasseur, Lexis Nexis, periodical updated annually since 2008
  • Co-author, “De l’évaluation des dommages suivant la résiliation des contrats de service et les contraventions à la Loi sur la concurrence,” Service de la formation continue du Barreau du Québec, Volume 255, 2006, with the Honourable Justice Suzanne Côté of the Supreme Court of Canada

Education

  • LL.B., Université de Montréal, 2005
  • DESS, International Trade Law, Université Montpellier 1, 2002
  • DJCE certificate – Intellectual Property, 2002
  • Master’s in International and Transnational Law, Université Laval, 2001
  • Master’s in Private Law, Université de Franche-Comté, 2000
  • Undergraduate Diploma in Law, Université de Strasbourg, 1998
  1. Lavery involved in the construction of the new Île-aux-Tourtes bridge

    Following a qualification process, the Ministère des Transports et de la Mobilité durable du Québec (MTMD) issued a call for tenders in 2022 for the construction of the new Île-aux-Tourtes bridge pursuant to the project delivery method known as design-build-finance (DBF). Since this was a DBF, the financing of this project had to be included in the proposals made by the selected candidates. Lavery represented the successful consortium made up of Dragados Canada Inc., Roxboro Excavation Inc. and Construction Demathieu & Bard Inc. Our role required expertise in the following areas: (a)   Governance and corporate law  (b)  Project financing (banking and securities)  (c)   Public procurement (d)  Construction law (e)   Commercial agreements (f)    Taxation  Lavery represented the consortium from the call for proposals to the financial close, including the drafting phase leading up to the awarding of the contract to the consortium. The financing was the most complex part of this transaction. Under the hybrid approach retained for that project, a major credit facility to be granted by a bank syndicate had to be set up, as well the private placement of two tranches of bonds. This involved adjusting the rights and obligations of creditors on both sides within a sophisticated intercreditor agreement. The financing also required parent company guarantees, including from French and Spanish corporations, which required us to find common ground to accommodate the typical requirements of a North American financing and the specific corporate and commercial features applicable in France and Spain. To meet this challenge, we put together a multidisciplinary team, divided up the work in accordance with our professionals’ diverse expertises, and dedicated a team member exclusively to interactions with the MTMD, its lawyers and the issuers of performance bonds typical for this kind of projects. Sound project management practices were essential to the success of this team effort. It is a privilege for Lavery to have participated in this essential project allowing the people of Quebec to obtain a new bridge linking the regions of Montérégie and Montréal. The Lavery team was led by Josianne Beaudry, Nicolas Gagnon, Édith Jacques, David Tournier and André Vautour, and included Véronik Bonneville-Pesant, Katerina Kostopoulos, Jean-François Maurice, Joseph Gualdieri, Siddhartha Borissov-Beausoleil, Alexandre Turcotte, Luc Pariseau, Charles Hugo Gagné, Mickaël Pageau, Jean-Vincent Prévost-Bérubé and Yohann Lévy.

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  2. Lavery helps Cultures Gen V become Quebec’s largest greenhouse grower

    On July 4, 2023, Cultures Gen V, one of Quebec’s leading greenhouse growers, announced the acquisition of Serres Royales. The acquisition furthers Cultures Gen V’s business strategy, which aims to improve Quebec’s food self-sufficiency by expanding sustainable greenhouse growing and offering consumers a wider variety of superior quality products. This transaction makes Cultures Gen V the largest diversified greenhouse grower in Quebec, adding 9 hectares of tomatoes to its current acreage, for a total of 36 hectares. Lavery was privileged to represent Cultures Gen V in the transaction. Not only did the firm implement the group’s pre-transaction refinancing, it also negotiated and closed the transaction. The Lavery team was led by Étienne Brassard with the assistance of Gabrielle Ahélo and France Camille De Mers and the collaboration of Béatrice Bull, Pamela Cifola, Éric Gélinas, Jessica Parent, Chantal Desjardins, James Duffy, Valérie Belle-Isle, Sonia Guérin, Joseph Lauzon-Potts, Arielle Supino, Bernard Trang, Katerina Kostopoulos, Charlotte Dangoisse, David Tournier, Ana Cristina Nascimento, Joëlle Montpetit and Nadine Giguère.

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  3. Lavery recruits two partners and expands its expertise in business law and intellectual property

    Lavery is delighted to welcome two new partners, David Tournier and Benoit Yelle, to the Business Law and Intellectual Property groups respectively. They bring cutting-edge expertise in these fast-growing sectors and a practice approach based on technological innovation. David Tournier joins the Business Law group and will focus on corporate financing. His extensive experience in private practice, in particular, bank financing, infrastructure projects, insolvency and private equity, has led him to deal with lenders and borrowers in the context of syndicated and cross-border loans, acquisition and project financings (including PPPs). David has a wide-ranging portfolio, having represented both start-ups and multinationals, as well as investors involved in engineering, green industrial projects and new technology, which is one of his passions. "Lavery has a reputation for excellence in the provincial and national markets. When combined with its independence, this reputation puts it in a good position to serve a wide range of clients in different areas of business law. The lawyers from the firm that I already knew showed me the human side of this great organization, and easily convinced me to join their wonderful team," said David Tournier. His experience in well-known law firms and as a company director will undoubtedly benefit our clients. Benoit Yelle joins the Intellectual Property group. A registered patent agent in Canada and the United States with a background in computer engineering, Benoit has developed an expertise over the years in everything from mechanical inventions to quantum technologies, hand tools, medical devices, network protocols, telecommunications, mobile applications and quantum computing. Within the Lavery network, he will focus his practice on drafting and prosecuting patent and industrial design applications. Thanks to his considerable experience in analyzing the patentability and commercial potential of invention disclosures, Benoît worked as a patent engineer and agent for a multinational telecommunications company. "Lavery's Intellectual Property group needs no introduction. We share a common vision on how best to practice IP. It also seemed to me that Lavery was the most innovative and best-suited platform to leverage current and future changes to the practice of law. I think I found the right place to harness my passion for innovation!" said Benoit Yelle. By becoming a partner and patent agent at Lavery, Benoit will be able to adapt his approach and provide services that help achieve his clients' objectives.

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