Public Construction

From the earliest days of our country, construction was a key service the government required from the private sector. Particularly in the early part of the 20th century, public contracting law developed into a sophisticated practice through construction, especially by the military. So it is no coincidence that government contracts and construction contracts have very similar formats, and that many of the key concepts in private construction law—terminations for convenience and differing site conditions, to name a pair—have their origins in public construction contracting principles. Our government contracts team includes some of the most respected construction lawyers in the country. Examples of our public construction matters include:

Representing an ENR Top 10 general contractor in connection with the prosecution of a claim for delays and extra work resulting from the renovation of a federal building in Jackson, Mississippi.
Took over the role of principal counsel on behalf of a joint venture and handled the arbitration over a defective design, delay, and disruption claim on behalf of the contractor against a major regional transportation authority. The arbitration, which also included counterclaims for design and construction defects, resulted in an award to the client exceeding $66 million.
Represented an international construction firm in a claim arising out of the construction of a forensic laboratory for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Obtained a multimillion-dollar recovery for the client in a settlement with the government on the eve of trial.
Worked with our white collar and immigration teams in responding to a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) onsite inspection at our client’s construction project and addressed the E-Verify compliance issues arising from that inspection with both ICE and the government customer agency.
Advised a leading foreign manufacturer of medical equipment on its compliance with the Buy American Act and Trade Agreements Act on multiple government construction products, helping the client avoid claims for delay and other damages by convincing the customer of the client’s compliance with domestic-source restrictions.
Advised a world-renowned research hospital on its obligations under a grant agreement with the Department of Health and Human Services for the construction of a new education and conference center.
Represented a disappointed bidder in a protest of a contract for sewer construction procured by a major metropolitan city.
Negotiated the construction management agreement on behalf of the construction manager for the Atlanta Federal Center, a $200 million GSA project constructed on a design-build basis in downtown Atlanta.
Protested an award in connection with the construction of a $62 million detention-center facility.
Represented the losing bidder in a bid protest over a major toll-road project in Georgia.

Negotiated more than $400 million in multiparty finance/design/build/operate agreements for state-of-the-art privatized wastewater treatment plants in Florida, Illinois, California, and Hawaii that manufacture pelletized fertilizer as a marketable byproduct.
Assisted numerous counties and authorities in the preparation of bid packages and requests for proposals for construction and design-build projects.
Helped legislators draft a new procurement statute for Georgia cities, counties, and authorities, which for the first time enabled those entities to procure construction services using design/build, guaranteed maximum pricing, and other modern construction delivery systems.
Represented the bond trustee in multiple receivership actions and bond claims against the builders and developers of federal government military housing arising out of government-sponsored development agreements, construction contracts, and financing.
Represented a national engineering and construction firm in a dispute with a major city over the design and construction of a light-rail system.
Served as counsel to a publicly traded company in a federal investigation of alleged fraudulent billings in connection with federal highway projects.
Represented an international curtainwall and glass-structure design firm in its design responsibilities under domestic-source regulations applicable to federal and federally assisted construction projects.
Represented the state agency responsible for overseeing construction and maintenance of court facilities throughout California.
Following legislative enactment of competitive bidding requirements, drafted a public agency’s procurement policies and procedures for the competitive bidding of construction contracts and solicitation of professional services. We also drafted standard design, professional services, construction procurement, and contract documents for the water agency’s capital improvement program.
Represented the prime contractor in a bid protest relating to a VA hospital seismic retrofit project in Long Beach, California.
Represented a prime steel fabrication/erection contractor in the negotiation and drafting of a construction contract for the construction of the Puerto Rico Convention Center. We later counseled the client in a dispute over design responsibility that arose during construction.
Represented the prime steel fabrication/erection contractor in a bid protest relating to the construction of the Los Angeles Convention Center.
Counseled a contractor client on project-related issues during construction of the Coastal Interceptor Relief Sewer project in Los Angeles.
Represented a contractor on delay and constructive acceleration claims asserted by mechanical and security subcontractors on a prison constructed for the Georgia Department of Corrections.
Represented an electrical contractor in connection with $2.8 million in claims against the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation arising out of the construction of a prison in Northern California.
Represented a prime contractor in prosecuting $1.2 million in claims against the City of Solano Beach, California, arising from a grade separation/sewer relocation project.
Represented the prime electrical contractor in connection with claims arising out of the construction of the city of Los Angeles’ “smart traffic” management system.