We were named North American Infrastructure Law Firm of the Year by Infrastructure Investor in 2014-2016 and are ranked Band 1 in Chambers USA and Chambers Global 2020 for PPP projects. Chambers noted that we are unique among US market-leading infrastructure practices for the depth of our experience as government party counsel, sponsor’s counsel, lenders’ counsel and underwriters’ counsel, enabling us to understand and appreciate all perspectives of infrastructure transactions.

The core of our infrastructure practice consists of attorneys with extensive experience representing government entities on infrastructure and other transactional matters, including attorneys who have served in government in legal and policy roles. We have experience interfacing with the federal government on TIFIA and private-activity bond financing and regulatory matters related to infrastructure projects. We understand the unique issues facing governmental entities and the sensitivities of intergovernmental relations, which may be particularly complex at the federal, state and local levels with respect to individual projects.

In these projects, we represent public sector entities, sponsors, lenders and underwriters. Examples of our experience in these sectors are highlighted below.

Roads/Bridges

• BOT Western Harbour Crossing. We advised Western Harbour Tunnel Company Limited, a joint-venture company, on tender documents and negotiations with Hong Kong SAR Government on the terms and conditions leading to the Hong Kong SAR Government’s grant of a 30-year franchise for the build-operate-transfer (BOT) Western Harbour Crossing project.
• Chicago Skyway. We acted as counsel for the City of Chicago in all aspects of the long-term concession lease of the Chicago Skyway, with a consortium of Cintra Concesiones de Infraestructuras de Transporte, S.A. and Macquarie Infrastructure Group, for $1.83 billion. This ground-breaking transaction was the first long-term lease and concession of an existing toll road or toll bridge or other major infrastructure asset in the United States. The transaction was named 2004 North American Transport Deal of the Year by Project Finance.
• England A1 Road. We advised the successful bidder for the design, build, finance and operation (DBFO) contract for the A1 (Darrington to Dishforth) road in the north of England, a PFI project with a capital value of approximately £240 million.
• Indiana Toll Road. We acted as co-counsel for the State of Indiana in the $3.8 billion long-term lease of the Indiana Toll Road to a Cintra-Macquarie consortium. The project was named 2006 North American Transport Deal of the Year by Project Finance.
• Knik Arm Bridge. We are sponsor’s counsel to a proposer in connection with the PPP project to design, construct, finance, operate and maintain the Knik Arm Crossing, a planned toll bridge and roadway crossing in Alaska to be constructed through an availability payment PPP.
• London A13 Highway. We advised the preferred bidder for the design, build, finance and operation (DBFO) contract for the A13 Highway in East London (the A13 Thames Gateway), a PFI project with a capital value of £200 million.
• Northwest Parkway. We acted as counsel to the Northwest Parkway Public Highway Authority in Colorado in a 99-year, $603 million concession and lease agreement for the Northwest Parkway, a toll road in the northwest suburbs of Denver, with a consortium of the Portuguese toll road operator Brisa Auto-Estradas de Portugal, S.A. and the Brazilian toll road operator Companhia de Concessoes Rodoviarias. The transaction was named 2007 North American Transport Deal of the Year by Project Finance.
• Pennsylvania Turnpike. We served as co-counsel to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in the proposed long-term concession and lease of the Pennsylvania Turnpike. In 2008, the Commonwealth received a bid of $12.8 billion in connection with the turnpike, the highest bid ever received on an infra¬structure transaction in the United States.
• São Paulo Beltway. We acted for the principal sponsor, Companhia de Concessoes Rodoviarias, and the concessionaire, Concessionaria do Rodoanel Oeste S.A., in connection with the $1.5 billion long-term limited recourse project financing of the Mario Covas Ringroad in São Paulo, Brazil. This deal was named 2009 Transport Deal of the Year by Project Finance International and Project Finance.

Airports

• Chicago Midway International Airport. We are acting as lead transaction counsel for the City of Chicago in the long-term concession lease of Midway Airport. In September 2008, the City received a winning bid of $2.521 billion from a consortium comprising Citi Infrastructure Investors, an affiliate of the Vancouver Airport Authority and John Hancock Life Insurance. In April 2009, the Concession Agreement with this consortium was terminated because of its inability to finance and make the upfront rent payment required under the agreement. The City of Chicago has announced its continued intent to complete the transaction.
• Hong Kong Airport. We acted for Cathay Pacific Airways Limited in the award of a BOT concession from the Hong Kong Airport Authority for the construction and operation of the second cargo terminal at Hong Kong International Airport.
• San Juan Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport. We are counsel to the Puerto Rico Public-Private Partnerships Authority, a governmental authority of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, with respect to a proposed public-private partnership transaction involving the Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport in San Juan, Puerto Rico’s major airport and a gateway to the Caribbean.

Marine Ports

• China Terminal. We acted for River Trade Terminal Limited in relation to a HK$4.2 billion limited recourse project financing to design, development, construction, completion, management and operation of the Tuen Mun River Trade Terminal.
• Chilean Seaport. We acted for DEG (German Investment and Development Company, a subsidiary of the KfW banking group) and other lenders in connection with the project financing of the privatization of the Chilean seaport of Valparaiso.
• Port of Portland. We represented the Port of Portland in its long-term lease of the port’s Terminal 6 marine container terminal to Philippines-based International Container Terminal Services, Inc. (ICTSI). We also advised the port in connection with required approvals from the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States for the transaction, which represents ICTSI’s first US port investment.
• Port of the Americas. We are representing the Port of the Americas Authority, a public authority of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, in negotiating a long-term operating concession for the planned $750 million Port of the Americas container terminal project in Ponce, Puerto Rico. Our lawyers have counseled the authority’s board, the negotiation committee and the senior staff as they considered a wide variety of business and legal issues related to the concession negotiations.

Parking

• Chicago Downtown Public Parking System. We represented the City of Chicago and the Chicago Park District in the long-term lease and concession of the Chicago Downtown Public Parking System, the largest underground parking system in the United States. The City received a winning bid of $563 million from an infrastructure investment fund established by Morgan Stanley & Company.
• Harrisburg Parking. We represented a potential equity investor in the proposed concession and lease of the on-street and off-street parking assets of the Harrisburg Parking Authority and the City of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.
• Pittsburgh Parking. We represented a bidder for the proposed concession of the on-street and off-street parking assets of the City of Pittsburgh and the Pittsburgh Parking Authority.

Mass Transit

• Chicago Transit Authority Open Fare Card. We represented a bidding consortium in the “open fare” card procurement by the Chicago Transit Authority, which was pursued as a PPP. The winning bidder will be responsible for installing and operating an enhanced fare card system that will allow users to access mass transit services using a variety of electronic and contactless payment means.
• São Paulo Metro Line 4. We advised ViaQuatro as concessionaire with respect to the supply, manufacturing and installation of a driverless operated metro system and the related project financing of the São Paulo Metro Line 4. This project was named 2008 Latin American Infrastructure Deal of the Year and 2008 Latin American Deal of the Year by Project Finance.

Social Infrastructure/Government Services

• England Healthcare PFIs. We represented THP (a consortium comprising AMEC Project Investments Limited and Abbey National Treasury Services plc) on its various bids to be preferred provider in connection with PFI projects being carried out by Hyndburn and Ribble Valley Healthcare NHS Trust (capital value £60m), the Central Manchester NHS Trust and the Manchester Children’s Hospital NHS Trust (capital value £199m) and the Whittington Hospital (capital value £23m).
• Indianapolis Water and Wastewater. We advised the City of Indianapolis on alternative PPP transaction structures related to the operation of and capital improvements to its water and wastewater systems. Ultimately, the city entered into an innovative agreement transferring operation of the systems to Citizens Energy Group. We acted as underwriters’ counsel to Citigroup with respect to the Indianapolis Local Public Improvement Bond Bank’s issuance of $159 million in bonds, secured by payments in lieu of taxes to be made by Citizens to the city. This bond issuance was named a "2010 Regional Deal of the Year”"by The Bond Buyer.
• Long Beach Courthouse. We are advising Meridiam Infrastructure and its Long Beach Judicial Partners consortium on state and local government law and government relations considerations in connection with respect to the Long Beach Courthouse Project. This project is frequently cited as a national model for use of a PPP structure to develop and finance "social infrastructure" such as community college and school facilities. Project implementation by California’s Administrative Office of Courts is using innovative delivery arrangement called performance-based infrastructure that leverages the private sector’s access to financing, technological expertise and management efficiency to provide high-quality public buildings.