Kerry R. Powell, KC
Kerry Powell is a partner in Gowling WLG's Calgary office and has been practising for over 35 years in the areas of construction, engineering and surety matters, with an emphasis on contract document preparation, negotiation and interpretation, claim preparation and analysis, plaintiff and defence litigation representation, and alternate dispute resolution, including mediation and arbitration.
He has provided representation on behalf of clients at the Court of King's Bench, Court of Appeal and Supreme Court of Canada levels and has been involved in a wide variety of major projects within Canada and internationally, including all types of social and transportation infrastructure, major building complexes, petroleum and natural gas facilities, pipelines, and co-generation and power transmission projects, using an equally wide variety of construction and engineering approaches, including P3, design build, construction management, EP, EPC, EPCM and many others. He is familiar with most industry standard documents, including FIDIC, CCDC, CCA, RAIC, COAA, ACA, and SAC forms of contracts and bonds, in many instances contributing to the current revisions of same.
Kerry acts on behalf of owners, general contractors, subcontractors, suppliers, engineering companies, sureties, architects, joint ventures, construction associations, governments and various consultants within the construction industry. His clients include Alberta Health Services, Alberta Transportation, Alberta Infrastructure, PCL Construction Management Ltd., Ledcor Construction Limited, Bird Construction Group, Acciona Infrastructures Canada Inc., CANA Construction Management Ltd., WorleyParsons Canada Inc., Great West Life Realty Advisors, Inc., Bentall Kennedy (Canada) Inc., Intact Assurance Company of Canada, Royal & Sun Alliance Insurance Company, Rio Can Property Services Inc., Travelers Insurance Company of Canada, Trisuran Insurance Company of Canada, the Alberta Construction Association, the Surety Association of Canada, and others.
Kerry has been named among The Best Lawyers in Canada in Construction Law (2012-2022), and according to Lexpert is one of Canada's Leading Lawyers in Infrastructure (2011, 2012, 2013, 2015), along with numerous other national and international accolades relating to his construction law practice.
He is also a member of the Canadian Construction Association and has acted as chairman of the Provincial Standards Practice Committee of the Alberta Construction Association, the Premier's Task Force on Alberta Government Contracts, as well as the Provincial Government/Industry Task Force on Builders' Liens. He has had input in, and developed an exceptional understanding of, most standard form construction contracts in use in Canada. He is a past director of the Alberta Construction Association and the Calgary Construction Association, as well as an active member of the Surety Association of Canada, the Alberta Construction Association, and the Alberta Construction Owner's Association. Kerry is also a founding member of the Canadian Bar Association's Construction Section in Alberta, the first such section in Canada.