Practice Areas
Our practice is oriented toward firms and individuals in the design and construction industry. We serve start-up firms, emerging businesses and established companies, whether operating as sole proprietors, partnerships, limited liability companies or corporations. Our services range from providing general counseling on personal and business matters to highly specialized, sometimes nearly unique, services for design and construction industry participants. Examples of specific services include:
- Design and Construction: Contracts
- Advice on legal aspects of proposals to provide professional services as well as on bids for public and private construction work.
- Contract planning to structure and coordinate the various contracts required for design and construction to define “the law of the project” appropriately.
- Drafting, review and negotiation of particular construction industry contracts involving owners, design professionals, construction managers, contractors, subcontractors and suppliers.
- Advice on legal methods of transferring or sharing professional and commercial risks, including review of legal aspects of insurance policy provisions.
- Counseling on legal aspects of administrative matters related to contract performance, change orders, progress payments, and project close-out. [back to top]
- General Business Services
- Selecting the appropriate form of business organization – sole proprietorship, limited liability company or partnership, business corporation, or professional corporation – in consideration of tax, management and liability issues.
- Preparing the documents to form or maintain the organization.
- Advising on and assisting in obtaining licenses, permits and approvals necessary to start and operate a business.
- Counseling on the proper conduct of shareholder meetings and corporate board of directors meetings necessary to maintain the corporation existence separate from its shareholders.
- Preparing corporate minutes.
- Assistance in issuing stock certificates and maintaining stock records for privately owned companies.
- Preparing agreements between stockholders and their corporations and among the stockholders themselves to restrict the transfer of shares and to establish how they will be disposed of upon various contingencies.
- Assistance and advice on the sale or purchase of business assets or whole businesses.
- Counseling on the legal aspects of general, commercial, and property matters affecting business, including:
- Purchases and sale of goods and products
- Secured transactions, such as those involving liens
- Protecting trade secrets and other intangible property rights
- Establishing and protecting copyrights
- Employment questions and personnel matters
- Arbitration and Dispute Resolution
- Counseling in litigation avoidance through proper administrative and compliance procedures.
- Assistance in analyzing the risks of litigating particular matters considering, for example, direct cost, distraction from regular business, personal trauma, time, and the effect of the litigation on other business interests and relationships.
- Advice and assistance with dispute settlement discussions and negotiations.
- Representation in arbitration under the rules of the American Arbitration Association and otherwise.
- Counseling on, and representation during, alternative dispute resolution procedures such as mediation or “mini-trial” procedures. [back to top]