Current practice
Jim Theodore is a partner in Freehills US based in New York. He has worked in all areas of corporate law, but has for several years concentrated on private infrastructure investment and development transactions, concentrating on public services, transport, health, water, public utilities and other social infrastructure. In particular, he has expertise in major construction/infrastructure works including complex project financed build own operate and transfer projects.
Jim also has extensive experience in outsourcing contracts, particularly government outsourcing and major business restructuring. As part of this work, he deals regularly with Project Agreements, Concession Deeds, Engineering Procurement and Construction Management Contracts as well as downstream operation and maintenance agreements. In recent times, he has advised in the negotiation of Government agreements and concession granting deeds for a wide range of social and economic infrastructure.
Experience
Jim has been responsible for designing and drafting delivery system documentation for major projects in Transport, Health, Water, Telecommunications and general outsourcing. Examples include:
Transport
- Transport Service Agreements - concession deeds, franchise agreements, operational performance standards
- Transport infrastructure construction and engineering agreements
- Roads, tunnels, rail and engineering contracts
- Rolling Stock procurement contracts
- Rail, Road and Transport Operation Agreements
- Maintenance Agreements
- Tolling concession and legislation
- Fare/Tolling Enforcement Systems
- Automated Fare Collection System Contracts
- Smart Card Transit Applications Procurement Contracts
- Transport Project Finance Documentation
- Transport IT/Software Procurement Contracts
- Transport business acquisitions
Health industry
- Health Service Agreements and hospital infrastructure
- Health services engineering procurement agreements
- Operation and Maintenance Agreements in a variety of private and public health projects
- Outsourcing of Government services and Utilities services (including Operation and Maintenance)
- project finance transaction documents for health projects
Major projects
In Australia, Jim has earned a reputation in infrastructure projects including the Victorian Rail State passenger privatisation, the Melbourne AUS$2 Billion City Link Road Project, advising the ERG Group with international Smartcard transit fare collection systems for city transport projects in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Canberra, Manchester (UK), Rome (Italy), San Francisco (US) and other ERG Group (Motorola Alliance) projects worldwide.
Jim is also experienced in drafting, managing and negotiating through the various stages of major tender procurement processes.
Major clients
Jim's clients include the ERG Group, CGEA Vivendi - France (infrastructure divisions), Alstom Australia and France, OneLink Transit Systems, Mayne Group Ltd, Transurban (City Link Project), Lend Lease (Bovis) and AXA (National Mutual) (Cogeneration Project). Jim also works with intermediaries and corporate advisers, Macquarie Bank, Deutsche Bank, Bank Nationale de Paris, KPMG and Price Waterhouse Coopers.
Professional background
Jim obtained his foreign lawyer practising permit from New York Supreme Court in 2010. Jim is a member of the International Bar Association, including international construction law and aeronautical law, and the Law Council of Australia. He often presents papers and seminars on the topic of works contracts, infrastructure projects and outsourcing and is recognised as an expert in this field.
He graduated from Melbourne University with a combined Law and Commerce degree and joined Freehills in 1987. Jim also holds formal qualifications in the Greek language.
