Find Lawyers in Colorado, United States for Construction Law
Practice Area Overview
For a typical project, a construction lawyer may be called upon to assist the owner in obtaining land for the project. Buying the land and building a project on the land often requires financing from another source, and construction lawyers often help prepare and negotiate the various loan documents that define the rights of the bank, bondholders, or other source of funding.
Construction lawyers may assist owners and developers in deciding which project delivery approach best suits their project, such as design-bid-build, design build, or multi-prime construction. Then, construction lawyers may help draft requests for bids to allow the owner or developer to identify a contractor. A lawyer may help determine whether a bid can be withdrawn due to a mistake. For certain public projects where the owner is a city, county, state, or arm of the federal government, a construction lawyer may be called upon to file a bid protest to challenge the fairness of the bidding process.
After the project is awarded, lawyers are often involved in drafting and negotiating contracts between the owner and general contractor or the general contractor and its subcontractors. Lawyers also may be involved in documenting insurance and bonding arrangements to secure performance of the work and protect the parties against property damage or personal injuries.
During the project, construction lawyers are often called upon to help the participants understand their contracts and comply with them. Many construction lawyers see this kind of work as extremely rewarding, because their guidance can help keep construction on track toward a successful conclusion. Where contractors or subcontractors are not being paid for their work, construction lawyers may file liens or bond claims to secure payment for their clients’ work.
Construction projects are complex, expensive, stressful, and sometimes dangerous, and thus give rise to many different kinds of disputes, including disputes about the cost and duration of the project, the quality of the work, and responsibility for injuries or damages suffered during the work or, sometimes, after the work is completed. Construction disputes are often complex, involving many parties and substantial amounts of money, so construction lawyers often engage in complex commercial litigation. Many construction contracts call for dispute resolution through dispute review boards, mediation, and arbitration, so a successful construction lawyer will understand the advantages, disadvantages, and nuances of alternative dispute resolution techniques.
While often seen as a specialist, a construction lawyer is, in many ways, a generalist who must be prepared to deal with almost any kind of legal problem that may affect the construction industry, whether that problem involves contract law, banking law, tax law, environmental law, criminal law, international law, bankruptcy law, real property law, insurance law, tort law, bond and lien law, administrative law, or litigation.
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David’s areas of practice include alternative dispute resolution and construction law. He arbitrates and mediates construction disputes as a trained and experienced neutral decision maker or facilitator. He advises owners and developers, general contractors, subcontractors, partnerships (public and private) suppliers and sureties on planning and dispute avoidance, as well as dispute resolution through negotiation, mediation, arbitration, and litigation. He drafts and negotiates construc...
Benton Barton is a talented, hardworking trial lawyer who is brought in to assist clients whenever and wherever they need him. Benton’s practice focuses on disputes and accidents arising from design, construction, and environmental projects. He has taken to trial many significant high-exposure cases, and his appellate efforts have generated new and notable law. In addition to serving on its management team and chairing its Construction & Design practice group, Benton is the firm&rsq...
Colin Baumchen joined Woods Aitken in 2012 and is a partner in the firm’s construction law and commercial litigation practice groups. He advises and represents contractors, subcontractors, owners, and other construction-related entities in various aspects of claim and dispute resolution proceedings. Colin also has significant experience with mediation, arbitration, and litigation in various state and federal courts. Colin is a member of the ABA Forum on Construction Law.
Shannon’s practice focuses on complex civil litigation. Shannon represents clients in various state and federal proceedings across the country as well as arbitration and FINRA hearings. Shannon has in depth experience representing clients in a wide variety of commercial issues including construction disputes, fiduciary claims, shareholder disputes, restrictive covenants, trade secrets, franchising, and landlord/tenant issues. She also works with clients on contract negotiations and busi...
With more than four decades of experience, Robert's practice focuses on alternative dispute resolution, including arbitration, mediation, dispute resolution boards, and early neutral evaluation. Robert has served as an arbitrator in more than 65 cases, including chairing more than 15 arbitration panels. He has mediated more than 125 cases. Over the course of his career, he has represented clients in most areas of civil litigation and arbitration, including construction, tax, environmental, an...
Kevin works closely with clients throughout the United States to achieve optimal outcomes in complicated construction and real estate litigation matters. 30 Years As a Trial Lawyer: For almost 30 years, Kevin has skillfully represented both plaintiffs and defendants in trials and appeals in a wide range of state and federal courts, as well as arbitration and mediation. When his clients’ reputations are on the line, he provides sound counsel. He has taken more than 40 cases to final hear...
Joe is a no-nonsense, hardworking lawyer with an undergraduate degree in Civil Engineering and eight years of practical work experience in the road and bridge construction industry, including work as a project superintendent for a heavy highway general contractor. Since he began practicing law in 1995, Joe’s practice has been devoted exclusively to construction law, with a specific emphasis in construction litigation. He represents owners, design professionals, contractors/subcontractor...
Alvin Cohen is a trial lawyer, representing businesses involved in the construction and real estate industries. Typical clients include prime contractors and subcontractors, material suppliers, homebuilders, land developers, and commercial real estate developers. Al’s practice includes both private sector projects and government contracts. His construction cases span the full range of construction disputes, and he has litigated, for example, complex delay and disruption claims and their...
Named 2017 and 2018 Barrister's Best Plaintiff Construction Defect Attorney by Law Week Colorado , Shane began practicing construction defect litigation in 2006 as Mike Hearn’s associate. Since that time, Shane has successfully represented hundreds of homeowners and associations across Colorado in arbitration proceedings and at the district and appellate court levels. Shane has presented numerous Continuing Legal Education (CLE) courses, DORA CAM credit classes, and CAMICB courses regar...
Kory George is a member of the Firm’s Management Committee and is co-chair of the Firm’s Construction Law, Commercial Litigation, and Dispute Resolution practice groups. He has practiced law with Woods Aitken since 2003, with an emphasis in construction law, construction litigation, and commercial litigation. His experience includes advising and representing construction industry participants and commercial entities in all aspects of claim and dispute resolution proceedings, inclu...
Tim helps developers, contractors, and commercial real estate clients achieve optimal outcomes when planning projects and facing complex disputes. Dispute Resolution: Tim understands the interrelationship of real estate development, project construction, and long-term property management, and uses this knowledge when representing clients in litigation and arbitration. Avoiding Disputes: Tim also assists his clients avoid disputes by drafting construction and design contracts and related proje...
Duncan focuses his practice on difficult and complex civil litigation and family law matters. He has significant experience in a variety of fields including construction defect, insurance, real estate and commercial litigation. He also assists with complicated domestic relations matters, and is especially useful in complicated property situations, or when there are concurrent civil lawsuits, receiverships, business torts or partnership dissolutions.Duncan’s work has led him to represent...
After a forty-year career litigating and arbitrating construction cases, Dan Gross now focuses his practice on alternative dispute resolution. He also serves in a senior advisor role with Woods Aitken, advising clients and regularly assisting the firm’s construction and litigation groups. As a practitioner, Dan tried or arbitrated more than 85 cases covering the gamut of public and private construction—building, commercial, industrial, heavy/highway, specialty, large residential, ...
Mr. Gruskin is a shareholder of the Denver, Colorado law firm of Senn Visciano Canges P.C. He received a BA in political science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and his JD from the University of Denver College of Law. His practice primarily focuses on construction law, alternative dispute resolution and litigation (commercial and real estate). He is counsel for many construction industry clients, including owners (both public and private), developers, contractors, construction manage...
Chris partners with his clients on broad aspects of real estate projects including affordable housing developments and finance matters. In addition to his traditional real estate and finance practice, Chris specializes in servicing clients at every stage of multifamily and affordable housing development and finance. He serves as counsel on a local and national level to for-profit developers, nonprofit organizations, local and state housing authorities, conventional lenders, and investors invo...
Sean consistently achieves positive outcomes for clients, whether through contract drafting and negotiation, settlement, dispositive motion, trial, or appeal. With over a decade of litigation and trial experience, Sean is focused on counseling clients through the whole life cycle of commercial construction projects. Understanding the litigation of construction disputes, Sean and his team of project attorneys anticipate problems and protect clients’ interests in drafting and negotiating ...
Chris handles his clients real estate transactions and litigation from start to finish. Since he is both a litigator and transactional attorney, his clients receive sound legal advice at the beginning of their projects which limits the risk of future litigation. Comprehensive Experience: Using the experience he’s gained in his 30 years’ practice in real estate transactions and litigation, Chris is able to prosecute large, document-intensive construction and commercial litigation e...
Mike has practiced in the area of construction defect litigation since 1983 and he has practiced exclusively in this area for the past 30 years. In that time, he has represented over 300 homeowners associations and 600 individual homeowners in construction defect claims brought against developers, builders and subcontractors. He has also represented owners of commercial buildings, high rises, apartments, raw land and even self-storage facilities. Mike has spoken at numerous seminars concernin...
Dave Hersh is a civil trial lawyer with the skill, passion, and experience to win your case. When your business or health is on the line, Dave is the advocate you want in your corner, fighting for you. For more than 35 years Dave has focused his practice on civil trial work. Dave thrives on handling complex civil cases, presenting them simply, effectively, and persuasively to a jury. Dave has tried well over 145 civil jury trials to verdict and has “tried” scores of civil arbitrat...
Joel Heusinger has practiced law with Woods Aitken since 1986 with an emphasis in construction law and litigation. He has been involved in numerous complex construction disputes throughout the United States involving hundreds of millions of dollars in claims and damages as well as the management and review of millions of pages of documents and electronic data. He has also participated in over 400 mediations and numerous arbitration hearings. Joel advises and represents contractors, subcontrac...
Kerry Kester has practiced law with Woods Aitken since 1981 focusing on construction contracting, construction dispute resolution, and counseling of general and specialty contractors, owners, subcontractors, sureties, design professionals, and suppliers. Kerry’s experience includes counseling clients regarding claims and dispute avoidance, lien and bond claims, contract negotiations and project management. It also includes mediation, arbitration, and appeals before state and federal cou...
David M. McLain is a founding member of Higgins, Hopkins, McLain & Roswell, LLC, a firm which specializes in construction law and construction litigation throughout Colorado. Mr. McLain received his undergraduate degree from Colorado State University, graduating cum laude, and his law degree from the University of Denver, College of Law. Mr. McLain completed the Claims and Litigation Management Alliance Litigation Management Institute, earning the designation from that organization as a C...
Mr. Ninneman litigates complex commercial and construction disputes in state and federal court and arbitration, representing owner/developers, general contractors, design-builders, subcontractors, architects, engineers, and suppliers on private, public and hybrid projects, including heavy civil infrastructure, sports arenas, schools, hotels, hospitals, mass transit, roadways, industrial warehousing, and renovation and development of apartments, multi-family, mixed-use and single family reside...
Craig S. Nuss, the co-practice group leader of the Construction Defects department at Burg Simpson. His department has achieved Tier 1 status by US News and World Report (the highest-ranking available). Mr. Nuss is a Colorado native born in Brush in 1960. He obtained his undergraduate degree in business administration from the University of Colorado at Boulder in 1982 and graduated from the University of Denver College of Law in 1988. Mr. Nuss begin his legal career the following year with a ...
Litigation can be brutal. Too often, individuals and businesses suffer needlessly because lawyers insist on doing things "the same old way." Not with us. Not with Mike. Mike's trademark is his relentless pursuit of new and better answers. His hallmark is the recognition that better answers come only with understanding. Not just surface familiarity, but a true appreciation of your world. Mike takes the time to listen, to answer questions, and to ask questions. He doesn't just ask "where do you...
Mari Perczak is the co-practice group leader of the Construction Defects department at Burg Simpson. She and her department have achieved Tier 1 status by US News and World Report, which is the highest-ranking available. Ms. Perczak has more than thirty years of experience as a Colorado trial lawyer and has successfully handled many large construction defect cases for Colorado homeowners and homeowner associations. In 2020, Ms. Perczak was lead trial counsel in a lengthy arbitration where she...
Expertise spans land use and zoning, general real estate matters and urban renewal and public finance. Over a decade of real estate experience. Brings strong local ties to Colorado-focused projects. With an emphasis on land use and entitlements, Caitlin’s practice spans all areas of real estate development including acquisitions and dispositions, zoning and development as well as serving as special and general counsel to various governmental and quasi-governmental entities. Working prim...
Evan works closely with clients in the commercial real estate and infrastructure, especially renewables and pipeline development, industries. Much of his work involves complex projects that span multiple sites and multiple states. Pipeline, Renewables and other Infrastructure Projects: Evan represents companies in connection with oil and gas pipeline developments. Additionally, he represents renewable energy clients, including developers of wind and solar farms. He also represents landowners ...
Ron Sandgrund is a well-known trial lawyer and Colorado’s most prolific author of articles and books on Colorado construction and materials defect law and related insurance coverage issues. Mr. Sandgrund has extensive experience litigating construction defect, construction materials, product liability, multi-family community, class action, and insurance lawsuits, and he has argued many cases before the Colorado Court of Appeals, Colorado Supreme Court, and U.S. Tenth Circuit Court of Ap...
Ivan A. Sarkissian, co-founder of McConaughy & Sarkissian, P.C., was admitted to practice law in Colorado in 1997 and is admitted to practice in all Colorado state courts, the United States District Court for the District of Colorado, and the United States Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals. Mr. Sarkissian received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Michigan State University in 1993 and attended the Tulane University School of Law, obtaining his Juris Doctorate degree, cum laude, in 1997. While...
Jennifer Seidman’s practice focuses on representing homeowners and homeowner associations in construction defect and defective building products cases. Her work includes cases involving structural failures and foundation movement, water intrusion and building envelope failures, building product defects, and design professional errors. Ms. Seidman appreciates how confusing the legal process can be for homeowners and association board members and strives to help homeowners and homeowner a...
Joe Smith is a licensed attorney in Colorado and Florida and a Colorado licensed architect with over twenty-five years of architecture, construction law, construction defect litigation, and related insurance coverage and bankruptcy experience. Throughout his legal career, Joe has exclusively represented homeowners, homeowner associations, and building owners. From 2011 to 2014 Joe worked as a forensic architect at a Colorado consulting firm where he provided forensic services to private and p...
Mike Williams joined Senn Visciano Canges in 2013 as a Director. He has been practicing law for thirty years, the majority of which was with an old-line Denver firm. Mike’s practice is, in some fashion, connected to real estate. This includes extensive experience in commercial leasing and tenant relations, acquisition and disposition of office, industrial, retail and multi-family properties, representing real estate professionals in disputes before their boards or in litigation, and adv...
Laura DePetro joined Woods Aitken in 2014 and is a partner in the firm's Denver office. She is a member of the firm’s litigation group, working in the commercial litigation and construction law practice areas. Laura received her J.D. from Creighton University Law School, where she participated in trial team, was a member of the Creighton Law Review and Moot Court Board and received numerous CALI Excellence for the Future Awards. During law school, Laura clerked for a mid-size firm in Om...
Abby Frame joined our Denver office in 2021 and is a member of the firm’s construction law and commercial litigation practice groups. Abby advises and represents business owners, contractors, subcontractors, and design professionals on construction and commercial disputes, contract formation, and negotiations. Abby received her J.D. from the University of Colorado Law School in 2018 where she was an associate editor for the Colorado Law Review, fulfilled the Colorado Law Public Service ...
Chris is a shareholder at Griffiths Law PC and focuses his practice on complex civil litigation and family law matters. His civil litigation practice focuses on construction, insurance, real estate, commercial, and business disputes. His family law practice focuses on divorce and related domestic relations matters.Chris represents a variety of clients including individuals and companies facing complicated and difficult problems. In his civil practice, Chris has represented clients from all pa...
Alexis Hailpern brings unique depth to her practice, which focuses on complex financial and real estate transactions. A skilled negotiator, Alexis pairs expertise in tax controversy litigation and substantial relationship-building skills to her work representing clients. Alexis prides herself on professionalism and collaboration with all parties to transactions in order to facilitate the best experience and deal possible. She has experience managing large construction contracts and financing ...
Amanda Hoberg joined our Denver office in 2020 and is a member of the firm’s construction law and commercial litigation practice groups. She is a proven advocate who can assist and counsel clients through all stages of a dispute. Amanda has significant experience in preparing and taking cases to trial. Amanda started her legal practice at a national law firm practicing civil litigation. During that time, Amanda served as a member of multiple litigation teams, handling all aspects of com...
Sam John is an Associate in the business litigation group at Robinson Waters & O’Dorisio, PC. Sam has represented clients in complex commercial litigation, class actions, construction litigation, and insurance coverage disputes. Sam has experience litigating at trial, in binding arbitration, and on appeal. Sam has achieved successful outcomes for his clients in all phases of litigation and dispute resolution. Sam is licensed to practice in Colorado, New York and New Jersey.
In her practice, Danielle represents developers, homebuilders, for-profit and not-for-profit corporations in all areas of real estate law. She has extensive legal experience in the areas of commercial real estate development transactions, including entitling and improving real property, commercial real estate finance utilizing traditional and non-traditional funding sources, not-for-profit law, affordable housing, and construction law. Additionally, Danielle has represented limited equity coo...
Charles counsels clients on a broad range of complex commercial real estate matters including the acquisition, disposition, financing, development, and leasing of commercial properties. His background includes representing owners, developers, investors, financial institutions, landlords, tenants, and utility providers on various real estate projects across the country. Charles’ experience includes counseling clients with the acquisition and disposition of office buildings, apartments, h...
Prior to joining the firm, Allyson was an Appellate Law Clerk at the Florida Fifth District Court of Appeal. There, she worked on appeals in a wide variety of legal topics and gained a unique perspective of all types of cases including construction defects, construction contracts, building code violations, and insurance claims. At KerraneStorz, Allyson assists in protecting homeowners and homeowner associations biggest investment by bringing claims against developers and builders for the cons...
Edison McDaniels is a trial attorney with the Construction Defects Litigation Group at Burg Simpson Eldredge Hersh & Jardine. Since joining the firm, Mr. McDaniels has focused his practice on construction defect law and construction products liability. He currently works with the team to represent homeowners and community associations. Mr. McDaniels has been selected by the National Trial Lawyers Association for inclusion in The Top 40 under 40 Association. A 2007 graduate of Virginia Tec...
Thomas brings over a decade of industry experience to advise clients on real estate and construction projects from inception through completion. From more than ten years as a project and operational manager for a custom home electrical subcontractor, Thomas has first-hand experience with the challenges facing developers and contractors on complex construction projects. He combines legal knowledge, industry experience, and a service-oriented approach, to guide clients through all phases of dev...
Prior to joining KerraneStorz, Andrew spent two years in Augusta, Georgia as a Law Clerk for the Honorable Dudley H. Bowen, Jr. of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Georgia. His clerkship provided him with invaluable experience in how to present an effective case. Andrew attended Washington and Lee University School of Law. There, he was a Lead Articles Editor on the Washington and Lee Law Review. He also externed for the Honorable Robert S. Ballou, Magistrate Judg...
Neil is originally from Pittsburgh, PA. He earned his Juris Doctor at Michigan State University College of Law in East Lansing, MI, where he was a member of the Law Review and a clinician with the Alvin L. Storrs Low-Income Taxpayer Clinic. Neil received his undergraduate degree in Economics, with an emphasis in Financial Economics and a minor in Mathematics, from Washington & Jefferson College. Neil is an experienced litigator who loves the courtroom, yet advises his clients from a ratio...
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