Construction Law Litigation - Construction
Deborah "Debbie" Cazan
Recognized in Best Lawyers since 2018 Awarded Practice Areas
Biography
Deborah Cazan is an experienced construction attorney and dedicated business counselor. One hundred percent of her practice over the past 16 years has focused on representing clients in litigation, arbitration and mediation of construction, development and real estate related disputes, including claims for delay, acceleration, interference, defective construction, defective design, scope changes and other issues. She has prosecuted and defended high-profile and high-dollar claims all over the country for quality clients in a wide variety of industries, including energy, hospitality, health care, mixed-use, multifamily, industrial, manufacturing, retail and education.
On the transactional side, Deborah has extensive experience drafting and negotiating general contractor and construction management agreements, EPC, design-build, program management, project management and architectural and engineering agreements. She has also helped numerous clients with mid-project change orders and amendments necessary to resolve disputes and prevent future litigation.
Overview
- Vanderbilt University, J.D., graduated 2001
- Georgia, Georgia
- American Bar Association - Member
- Commercial Real Estate Women (CREW) (Leadership Program) - Member
- Construction Law Section of the Atlanta Bar Association - Member
- National Association for Industrial and Office Parks (NAIOP) - Member
- Women’s Energy Network (WEN) - Member
- Georgia, Georgia
- American Bar Association - Member
- Commercial Real Estate Women (CREW) (Leadership Program) - Member
- Construction Law Section of the Atlanta Bar Association - Member
- National Association for Industrial and Office Parks (NAIOP) - Member
- Women’s Energy Network (WEN) - Member
- Vanderbilt University, J.D., graduated 2001
Client Testimonials
Awards & Focus
Recognized in The Best Lawyers in America® 2026 for work in:
- Construction Law
- Litigation - Construction
Additional Areas of Practice:
- Government Contracts
Special Focus:
- COVID-19
News & Media
Case History
Cases
- Multimillion-Dollar Defect Claim
Counsel to a large global developer in the prosecution of a multimillion-dollar construction defect claim against a general contractor in which 10 mixed-use retail and residential buildings in Atlanta were damaged by water intrusion. Repairs to the damaged property exceeded $16 million, and the client recovered in excess of $12 million in settlement.
- EPC Litigation
Represented an independent power producer in a dispute with an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractor over cost issues pertaining to the installation of wet scrubbers in three coal-fired power plants. The contract price was more than $1 billion, and our client argued that the EPC contractor overbilled for the work and ignored the terms of the parties’ contract regarding reimbursable costs. After several pre-trial rulings in our client’s favor pending in the Southern District of New York, including the granting of partial summary judgment, the EPC contractor agreed to settle the matter days before a jury was selected. As a result, our client avoided over $60 million in costs assessed by the contractor.
- Nuclear Power Plant Litigation
Represented a co-owner of the first nuclear power plant licensed and constructed in the United States in over 30 years. The plant is a $14 billion project, and litigation arose out of three years of delay and $1.5 billion in alleged cost overruns.
Transactions
- Professional Basketball Facility
Drafted and negotiated construction management, architect and project management agreements for a new training facility for a professional basketball team.
- Master Construction Contract Development
Represented the leading global foodservice retailer, with over 36,000 restaurants worldwide, in developing its master construction contract to be utilized in each new build and remodel nationwide.
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