Professionals and contract crews in nearly any industry could stand to benefit from legal aid and protection with the assistance of lawyers, and even a physical, outdoor job such as construction has need for legal services. Lawyers for construction companies do more work than some people may realize, and hiring a lawyer is critical if there is a professional dispute during a construction project between the involved parties such as the project owner, state officials, the construction crew, and others. Lawyers for construction companies are there to make sure that the law is followed, that everyone receives their due payments, and settle disputes as they arise.
The Construction Business
Lawyers for construction companies have a big industry on their hands, and legal disputes can become major affairs. Many crews for pouring concrete, installing electrical systems or plumbing, or interior decoration are ready for work and may rub shoulders on a large project, but sometimes, injury, late payments, contract breaches, or more can sour a work relationship and necessitate a law firm intervening. The American Arbitration Association, or AAA, often works with feuding construction crews in legal matters, and in the year 2015, they dealt with some 551 cases in the construction industry where claims were worth $500,000 or more. The largest mediated case of all was worth a huge $2.6 billion, and the biggest arbitration case had a worth of $96 million. All together, the claims and counterclaims of that year added up to $5.5 billion. With a construction market worth over $1 trillion, these construction lawyers are bound to negotiate cases worth a lot of money at any given time. How can they help a crew on a project? What other services do they provide?
The Work of Attorneys and Construction
Even at the onset of a project, lawyers will be present to ensure that the paperwork is handled correctly, such as looking over various contracts between different parties to see that no one is being exploited or deceived by the others. As the project continues, lawyers for construction companies will also mediate transfers of funds between different parties as per their contracts, and lawyers will handle matters if a payment is late or only partially honored. What is more, many different codes and accidents call for a lawyer’s attention. If workers are injured on the work site, for example, and one party suspects neglect or incompetence on another company’s part, lawyers from both sides will intervene and settle the dispute before it gets out of hand, and compensation money may be involved. Even without accidents or injury, there are state, city, and federal regulations and building codes to comply with, and attorneys for construction will make sure that fire codes or plumbing regulations are followed, for the workers’ safety and to legally protect the companies involved. If the overall project is late or running a higher budget than expected, the lawyers for the construction companies and the legal representation of the project manager will handle matters and once again, compensation may be involved. And if a construction project is terminated, or canceled, the lawyers will take care of leftover payments and contract terms, and even investigate if they believe the termination was not called for. If that happens, the attorneys may address this in court.