William Estes

Of Counsel

New York

Tel 646.346.8033
Fax 212.223.1942

Bill Estes focuses on large-scale alternative project delivery, including design-build and public-private partnerships (P3/PPP), and counsels on all stages of infrastructure development and construction. He brings to every engagement his insight gained as chief counsel to two project owners.

During more than 20 years of experience in both the public and private sectors, Bill has worked on transactional, litigation, legislative, and policy matters for alternative project delivery and conventional infrastructure projects in the transportation, social infrastructure, renewable energy, broadband/telecommunications, and water/wastewater sectors. His clients include public entities/owners, private concessionaires/contractors, and financing parties in the procurement, negotiation, financing, and administration of P3 and infrastructure projects.

Before joining Ballard Spahr, Bill served as Vice President and General Counsel of the New York City School Construction Authority (SCA), which builds and renovates the 1,800 schools in the nation’s largest school district. As the authority’s chief legal officer, he counseled executive management on all legal aspects of delivering the Authority’s $19 billion, five-year capital plan, including advising on procurement, contracts, litigation, regulatory, environmental, insurance, labor, legislative, governance, MWBE, and other commercial matters.

Bill also served as General Counsel and Secretary of the New York State Thruway Authority and Canal Corporation from 2009 to 2015, one of the nation’s longest tolled highways, which at the time also operated and maintained a 500 mile-long navigable waterway. He advised on the Authority’s procurement of the $3.1 billion contract to replace the Tappan Zee Bridge, the State’s first design-build project, which was financed through a record-setting $1.6 billion federal Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) loan. He also counseled on matters involving food and fuel concessionaires, a P3 fiber-optic contract, and renewable energy generation.

Bill served for over two years in the New York State Governor’s Counsel’s Office, where he worked regularly with the legal and executive staff of the State’s infrastructure agencies and authorities in carrying out the policy programs of the administrations of two governors. Bill has also worked in a boutique infrastructure firm, where he advised state and local governments and private utilities and contractors on the procurement, construction, and financing of transportation, water/wastewater, and public building infrastructure.

Earlier in this career, Bill worked for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, during which time he was cross-designated as a Special Assistant United States Attorney (E.D.N.Y.). He began his career in the New York State Attorney General’s Office (Investor Protection Unit).

Services

Experience

Representative Matters

Represented the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation in connection with the Major Bridges P3 Initiative for the reconstruction and rehabilitation of nine major bridges located throughout the Commonwealth.
Represented the Georgia Department of Transportation in connection with the $685.6 million design-build finance of the I-285/I-20 East Interchange.

Represented a state university campus in response to a Request for Proposal to design, build, finance, operate and maintain a climate solutions center on an island in the New York City harbor, with funding availability of up to $150 million for capital improvements.
Represented the University of Florida in connection with the P3 development of a new on-campus central energy plant.
Represented a Florida city in the drafting and negotiation of comprehensive agreements for two fire stations.
Represented the NYC School Construction Authority on a development agreement for a laboratory building to be designed, built, and financed by a private donor and gifted to New York City.
Represented the NYC School Construction Authority in the negotiation of its Project Labor Agreement for Fiscal Years 2021-2025, estimated to save taxpayers $366 million.
Counseled a state department of transportation on a design-build-operate-maintain solicitation and concession contract.
Advised a county on the acquisition of a city’s wastewater system.
Led an investigation on behalf of a county into an energy performance contract procurement.
Acted as local regulatory counsel to a publicly traded utility in the merger of a drinking water company.

Bill represented the New York State Thruway Authority and Canal Corporation as General Counsel in the following matters:

Mario Cuomo M. Bridge (replacing the Tappan Zee Bridge) – Advised on the procurement, construction and financing of the State’s first design-build contract.
Design-Build Legislation – Reviewed and commented on authorizing legislation for New York State, and later as General Counsel to the NYC School Construction Authority, New York City.
P3 550-mile Fiber Optic Broadband Network – Advised on contractual and regulatory issues and leases concerning this existing privately designed, built, financed, operated, and maintained network.
P3 Food and Fuel Concessions – Advised on contractual issues and amendments, regulatory, and policy matters arising out agreements with concessionaires operating 27 service areas.
Renewable Energy – Counseled on a contract with the owner of a hydropower facility concerning timing and amount of water releases from a New York State dam.

Professional Highlights

Pro Bono Experience

As part of his pro bono practice, Bill has provided corporate legal advice to a not-for-profit supporting members of the U.S. Armed Forces.

Professional Activities

Member, Committee on Contract Law, The Transportation Research Board (TRB) of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering & Medicine, 2016-2018

Member, Transportation and Construction Law Committees, Association of the Bar of the City of New York, 2016-2018

Recognition & Accomplishments

New York Law Journal 2014 Outstanding Legal Department Award, New York Thruway Authority and Canal Corporation

Speaking Engagements

Panelist, “Multiple Benefits and Risks – Legal Issues Within a Design Build Process,” Professional Women in Construction, Professional Development and Advisory Council Presentation (NYC), 2022

Speaker, “Licensing, Commercialization and Technology Transfer (T2) of Transportation Innovations,” Transportation Research Board’s (TRB) 56th Annual Workshop on Transportation Law, 2017

Speaker, “Renewable Energy Infrastructure Issues for Counties,” 2017 Annual Meeting of the County Attorneys’ Association of the State of New York (CAASNY)

Related Insights

Credentials

Education

Emory University School of Law (J.D. 1997)

Northwestern University (B.A. 1993)

Admissions

Connecticut

New Jersey

New York

U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey

U.S. District Court for the Southern and Eastern District of New York