Experience

Owners/Developers

• Settled multimillion-dollar defect claims against contractor and design team for corporate data center owner following dozens of depositions and significant law and motion practice as part of multi-faceted litigation team.
• Resolved complex construction defect, fraud, and misrepresentation damage claims for residential homeowner.
• Successfully pursued insurance recovery for commercial business severely damaged by tornado event.
• Won multimillion-dollar construction defect damages award in arbitration as part of litigation team representing a large residential and commercial developer.
• Successfully litigated breach of contract and fiduciary duty issues for developer in real estate transaction litigation.
• Pursued and secured collection in bad-faith insurance litigation for owner/developer.
• Defended corporate client against commercial lease damages claims.
• Recovered damages for homeowner clients in real estate property disputes.
• Counseled owner clients on insurance coverage issues and policy tracking protocols.

Contractors

• As part of litigation team, successfully defended an international general contractor from hundreds of thousands of dollars in subcontractor extra work claims and Miller Act lawsuits on federal projects.
• Assisted heavy highway and transportation contractor with claim preparation on state highway projects and in conjunction with state claims procedures.
• Won bid protest for general contractor on $33.5M federal construction project.
• Won California Court of Appeal decision affirming judgments obtained via dispositive motions in favor of a community college district and a large general contractor against a subcontractor’s claims for additional compensation.
• Represented a heavy civil engineering contractor as part of the litigation team in a multimillion-dollar matter involving claims of differing site conditions and disputed change orders on a large public works utility project.
• Represented a general contractor as part of the litigation team in a large dispute over a commercial shopping center development and claims of unpaid change orders, construction and design defects, and delay claims.
• Won arbitration award for a high-end residential contractor for unpaid work on a single-family home and defeating adverse million-dollar claims for alleged defects, fraud and misrepresentation.

Materials Suppliers

• Facilitated lien and bond collection of over $350,000 across four projects in four states notwithstanding bankruptcy filing by roofing subcontractor.
• Successfully recovered on Miller Act bond claims on large-scale public works projects.
• Collected on a $200,000 mechanic’s lien claim on private commercial project despite insolvent subcontractor customer.
• Secured collection from subcontractor, bond sureties and public entities across multiple projects.

Design Professionals

• Successfully defended Design Professionals from defective design claims on commercial projects.
• Counseled Design Professionals on collection matters.

Contracts

• Drafted and negotiated all types of AIA form contracts for Owners/Developers, Design Professionals, and Contractors on apartment buildings, condominiums, shopping centers, hotels, and other commercial projects.
• Prepared Design-Build agreements for specified project delivery systems.
• Prepared numerous job-specific design and construction agreements for various high-end residential improvements and commercial tenant improvement projects.
• Prepared terms and conditions sheets for use in construction contracting.

Honors & Activities

Professional Honors & Activities

• Included in The Best Lawyers in America^® (currently: Construction Law, Litigation – Construction), 2022–2023
• Oregon State Bar Construction Law Section Executive Committee Member
• Member of practice group nationally ranked by U.S. News – Best Lawyers^® “Best Law Firms,” 2010–2022
• Pro Bono Counsel, Legal Aid Services of Oregon-Volunteer Lawyers Project Night Clinic
• Member, Associates Council, Associated General Contractors – Oregon Columbia chapter

Civic Activities

• Oregon Children’s Theater Board Member
• Providence Portland Medical Foundation Board Member
• Architecture Foundation of Oregon Board Member
• Arts Council of Lake Oswego Board Member and Secretary
• Sigma Chi Fraternity Chapter Mentor and Leadership Training Faculty

Insights & Presentations

• “Construction Insurance: Common Coverage Mistakes and How To Correct Them,” Portland Business Journal, July 2022
• “Surety Bonds vs. Subcontractor Default Insurance” Daily Journal of Commerce, September 2021
• “Ensuring Your Construction Project Remains Insured,” Daily Journal of Commerce, November 2020
• “Be Aware (or Beware!) of Extended Mechanic’s Lien Rights,” Daily Journal of Commerce, November 2019
• “Claims, Contracts and the Common Law,” Construction Defect Litigation, The Seminar Group, May 2019
• “When “Art” Strikes Development,”Daily Journal of Commerce, November 2018
• “Tips on Preventing and Handling Liens if (When?) the Market crashes,” The New Normal: Preparing for Portland’s New Development Trends, Stoel Rives LLP, October 2018
• “Easement Litigation: Easements by Implication and Prescription” (co-presenter), Easements and Access, The Seminar Group, June 2018
• “ConsensusDocs 200 Agreement and General Conditions: Claims, Limitation Periods, Disputes, and Resolution,” HalfMoon Education ConsensusDocs Workshop, February 2018
• “When Three’s Company, and Not a Crowd,” Daily Journal of Commerce, November 2017
• “Contract Review (Deal Makers/Deal Breakers),” Advanced Construction Law, Oregon State Bar Construction Law Section, October 2017
• “Alter Ego: The $5MM personal danger of neglecting corporate formalities and utilizing substandard building materials,” Stoel Rives LLP Ahead of Schedule blog, March 14, 2017
• “Year-End Insurance Review: Common Coverage Oversights,” Daily Journal of Commerce, November 2016
• “Are you SOL under Oregon SOLs? - A refresher on Oregon statutes of limitation and repose,” 21st Annual Construction Law Seminar, The Seminar Group, September 2016
• “A New Wrinkle In Time To Claim Construction Defects,” Daily Journal of Commerce, April 2016
• “Protections Against Subcontractor Defaults,” Daily Journal of Commerce, November 2015
• “Defect Considerations Unique to Apartments and Condominiums,” 20th Annual Construction Law Seminar, The Seminar Group, September 2015
• “Construction Default Rights & Remedies: Subcontractor Default Insurance and Bonding,” The Seminar Group, June 2015
• “Finishing Strong vs. Finishing Wrong: Tips and Traps for Project Completion,” Daily Journal of Commerce, March 2015
• “Condominiums: Opportunities and Pitfalls,” The Seminar Group, March 2015
• “Put in Writing When the Clock Starts Ticking,” Daily Journal of Commerce, November 2014
• “Resolving Disputes on Public Construction Projects,” HalfMoon Education, Inc., October 2014
• “Launching Into the Future with Design-Build and Integrated Project Delivery,” AGC Summer Convention, August 2014
• “The Art of Negotiation,” (Joint Presentation with Pinnell/Busch, Inc.), AGC Summer Convention, August 2014
• “Retention Rule Change May Have Unintended Consequences,” Daily Journal of Commerce, March 2014
• “Owners & Developers Tips & Traps for Finishing Strong vs. Finishing Wrong,” Stoel Rives LLP, October 2013
• “Contractual Duty to Defend Kicks In When? Parties Should Clearly Define Parameters in Construction Contracts to Mitigate Risk of Costly Litigation,” Daily Journal of Commerce, July 2013
• “No Contractor’s License Means You Work For Free,” Stoel Rives LLP Ahead of Schedule blog, April 30, 2013
• “New for 2013! California Form Interrogatories – Construction Litigation (DISC-005),” Stoel Rives LLP Ahead of Schedule blog, November 1, 2012
• “Oregon’s Prompt Pay Acts Strengthened and Clarified in 2012,” Stoel Rives LLP Ahead of Schedule blog, March 22, 2012
• “Labor Lost, The Consequences of Performing Contractor Work In California Without A License,” Leonidou & Rosin, Professional Corporation, Construction Law Newsletter, Fall 2009

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