Ryan Krushelnitzky is a litigator and arbitration counsel, with a strong focus on construction law and product liability. With a Ph.D. in civil engineering (specializing in geotechnical engineering), Ryan brings a rare blend of technical insight and strategic legal thinking to assist his clients in resolving complex commercial disputes.

In the construction space, Ryan acts for construction contractors and subcontractors. He has acted on contractual disputes over progress and payment, delays, lost productivity, builders' and construction liens, construction deficiencies, tendering, and insurance/bonding. Ryan also assists his clients with contract review and general advice on construction-related matters. He has experience with industrial, infrastructure, large diameter pipeline, module, tunnelling, earthworks, civil, and commercial construction-related projects.

A Fellow of the Canadian College of Construction Lawyers, Ryan is recognized in The Best Lawyers™ in Canada and the Canadian Legal Lexpert® Directory for construction law. Recognition these directories is based on peer reviews of leading lawyers and their professional abilities.

In the product liability space, Ryan acts for product manufacturers and distributors. Ryan has dealt with breach of warranty and negligence claims relating to allegedly defective industrial and construction equipment, farming equipment, building systems, motor vehicles, building materials and various consumer goods. He also has experience with fire losses, and other product liability matters, such as personal injury losses. He also provides advice regarding the cross-border and jurisdictional issues that often arise when international manufacturers do business in Alberta.

Ryan has appeared before the Alberta Court of Justice (Provincial Court), the Alberta Court of King’s Bench, the Court of Appeal of Alberta, the King’s Bench for Saskatchewan, the Court of King’s Bench of Manitoba, as well as ad hoc and International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) arbitration tribunals. He has experience in both domestic and international arbitrations, as well as appeared as counsel in a week-long fully virtual trial. 

Ryan also clerked at the Supreme Court of Canada, Canada’s highest Court, working for the Honourable Justice Marshall Rothstein. Clerking gave Ryan a unique insight into the judicial decision-making process.

Representative Matters

Representative matters that Ryan has acted on include:

• Counsel for a major international EPC contractor involved in an oil sands module construction dispute resolved by way of an ad hoc commercial arbitration with a month-long merits hearing.
• Counsel for a major international EPC contractor involved in a wrongful termination dispute with an oil sands owner for an industrial site services contract.
• Counsel for a major international EPC contractor involved in a wrongful termination dispute involving a furnace upgrade at an ethylene plant.
• Representing a US-based engineering, fabrication, construction and maintenance contractor involved in a dispute with an oil sands producer over payment and delays.
• Representing a large civil construction company in an arbitration over changed conditions and extras arising from a large highway upgrading project.
• Counsel for a major Canadian construction and building services company involved in a dispute over the construction of a petrochemical facility that proceeded to a 3-week merits hearing as part of an ICC arbitration.
• Counsel for a major Canadian construction and building service company involved in a dispute over an infrastructure project that proceeded to a week-long merits hearing as part of an ad hoc commercial arbitration.
• Counsel defending a manufacturer in a 3-week King’s Bench product liability trial.
• Counsel for a major international pipeline contractor involved in a construction delay and impact claim arbitration.
• Counsel for a major farm implement manufacturer on a number of product liability related lawsuits.

Outside the Office

Ryan is a Term Lecturer teaching law to engineering students at the University of Alberta's Faculty of Engineering.