As many of you know, I am heavily involved in the American Bar Association’s Forum on the Construction Industry. For you non-lawyers, that’s a group (about 6,000) of geeky construction lawyers who get together three times a year for some of the best presentations on construction law, new technologies, risk management, financing, and many
Alternative Dispute Resolution
Arbitration: What Is It? Why Should You Care?
When parties to a construction project find themselves in a dispute, there are a few options to help find a resolution. These can include: engaging in informal settlement discussions, taking the dispute to an initial decision maker identified in the contract, or hiring a third-party mediator to help the parties find a resolution. If the…
Contracts Must Be Clear on “Arbitrability” Question, Especially for $56M Claims
I’ve blogged about arbitration in construction disputes on numerous occasions. Just like any other construction contract dispute, the resolution in arbitration often comes down to the language used in the parties’ agreement. This is especially true when the gateway question is: Who decides whether the dispute is arbitrable—the court or the arbitrator?
A Preliminary Review of the American Arbitration Association’s New ClauseBuilder
Yesterday, I received an email alert from the American Arbitration Association announcing ClauseBuilder, an on-line arbitration and mediation tool that assists individuals and organizations in drafting arbitration and mediation agreements. In today’s post, I review the program.
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AAA Announces Game Changer: Potential Arbitrators Now Available Online!
The NCAA college basketball tournament is not the only exciting game in town. The American Arbitration Association (AAA) recently announced a game changer called Arbitrator Select.
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Construction Law Seminars in the Music City
For all my Nashville and Middle-Tennessee friends, I want to take a moment to highlight two upcoming conferences. Although the programs are geared towards construction lawyers, don’t shy away if you did not get a “shark degree” from Build ‘Em Big University … Each conference offers a little different glimpse depending on your career path. …
Arbitrating Construction Disputes: Would You Like “Reason” With That Award?
Who knew that dispute resolution was a lot like ordering from a menu? Would you like one arbitrator or a panel of three arbitrators? Would you like your jurisdictional questions to be determined by the court or the arbitrator? Which arbitration rules do you want to apply? So many choices . . .
Recently, the American Arbitration Association revised and…
Construction Contracts and Arbitration Provisions: Is the Word “May” Mandatory? Maybe!
You don’t always say what you mean. And you don’t always mean what you say.
In construction contracts, parties attempt to use plain and ordinary words to describe their respective obligations. For example, when the parties use the word “shall” in their agreement, they generally understand that the obligation specified is mandatory. Or when parties use the…