Construction Claims Consultant 1

[peconsultant]

A contractor that I work with often recently completed construction on a mid-rise office tower. The final construction was completed approximately three months behind schedule, due to a variety of issues. The owner is trying to hold the contractor liable for lost revenues, while the contractor is looking to get paid for change orders and scope creep. The issue will probably end up in litigation.

The contractor has asked me for a recommendation on a consulting firm that specializes in construction claims and disputes (not a design firm). I gave them a recommendation, but they had a negative experience with that firm in the past. Do any of you know of such a firm?

Thank you for your help.

 

[Ron]

peconsultant...recommending a firm, in my opinion, does not violate typical board rules.

As for firms that do this, there are plenty of them; however, you might want to consider that firms who don't advertise themselves as "experts" in this area actually are probably better than those who do.

The issues in a case such as this can be numerous. A singly focused firm on construction delays/lost revenue can easily miss the "big picture".

Be careful in your recommendation. Consider firms that do a general range of consulting and forensics.

 

[dik]

Where are you located? If in the south east US, then Ron may be able to give you some direction.

He might be better served by contacting a lawyer who specialises in construction issues. He may have an engineering firm that he would normally use. Delay claims are difficult. Did the client advise the contractor of the delay after the contractor approached him for extra money for change in scope? Might be trying to get out of paying for extra work. Did the contractor advise the owner that there would be extra charges for the work and an extended time? What is the time for construction? If a three month job and the time doubled, this may be excessive. Why was the work delayed? Finances? Added Work? Weather? Material not available? All sorts of them… Does the contractor have any written records? Just the beginning of questions…

Dik

 

[peconsultant]

The project was in Texas. I believe the contractor does have a construction lawyer for this issue. As far as the specifics, I'm not too sure. I think the total construction time was around a year. The big problem from the owner's standpoint is they had tenants ready to occupy the building at a specific date. The contractor claims the delays were primarily due to the architect and the owner.

Ron, I agree that a consulting firm that is very knowledgeable in the construction industry in general is the best way to go. I'm just not familiar with these types of firms. I work in a design firm and that is where my entire career has been.

 

[Ron]

dik...that's very kind of you. Thank you.

peconsultant....dik is correct. Make sure the attorney is a construction lawyer. It really makes a difference.

In your area, you might contact French Engineering. They are pretty good at the forensic side and have experience in construction claims. The principal is Warren French, P.E. and he's licensed in Texas.

 

[dik]

I figured that Ron would know who to contact... it's almost in his backyard...

Was there an engineer or architect involved that can verify the timeline. It is essential to establish a timeline as well as any and all direction from the owner... it's better if the owner was put on notice that the added work would cause delay as well as added cost.

Almost all "Requests for Information" or "Notices of Change" that I've encountered over the last decade or so, have a couple of check boxes... one indicating that there may be a cost implication and the other that there may be a variation in schedules. On one of my current projects, the contractor was checking both of these until I informed him that to do so, he would have to indicate a reason for this... the practice stopped, except for ones that may be legit... For the last 25 years or so, I've used an Extra Services Work Order for some clients, when changes become substantial, or too frequent...

The problem with most liability insurance is that it doesn't cover delay issues...

Dik

 

[Brad805]

If your professional association uses outside legal council, I would suggest take a look at them. Do you have association magaines in your state? Our professional association does, and all the top construction law firms seem to advertise.

Brad