Lawyers and Construction

Anyone will need proper legal representation when they have been wronged or when they are trying to accomplish something in a court of law, and lawyers have, for centuries, used the law to represent their clients in any court of law, and many law firms specialize in particular types of cases. Divorce lawyers work with spouses ending a marriage, for example, and other lawyers represent victims of car crashes. Construction law, meanwhile, has its own type of lawyer, and attorneys can represent the workers or the managers of a construction or contractor company working on a construction project, such as when building a new hospital or skyscraper. Hiring a lawyer can be an essential step to take when a construction worker is injured on the job, or if the project is terminated wrongfully and a crew manager wants to reverse that decision. Hiring a lawyer will ensure that all workers and managers are treated and represented fairly during disputes at a construction project, and hiring a lawyer is essential during more mundane parts of the project as well, such as following safety and construction codes for the city and state. A construction law firm will always be available for workers who need help after an accident.

Construction Law

“Do I need a lawyer?” This is a question that either a regular worker or a construction crew manager may ask if something does wrong during a project, and often, the answer will be yes, and there is precedence for this. The American Arbitration Association, the AAA, has handled some very large cases where construction law was concerned, and large cases like these could very well happen in the future. For example, in the year 2015, the AAA had administered some 551 construction industry cases worth $500,000 or more. Of all the mediated cases, the biggest was worth an incredible $2.6 billion, and among the arbitration cases, the biggest was worth $96 million. All of the claims and counter-claims together were worth $5.5 billion in that year.

What does this mean for construction crews who need representation, or managers who believe that hiring a lawyer is the best defense against a dispute in a project? Some cases can get very large, but if the lawyers for all sides of a construction project are able to settle matters before then, and reach a fair conclusion, then a project can resume work before too long. Crews and managers should know just what they need these lawyers for.

In all cases, hiring a lawyer is important for when the project begins, and all the paperwork is being done between the project owner, the managers of the construction crews involved, and city representatives who need local cods for construction and safety to be observed. Codes for equipment use, fire hazards, slipping hazards, noise levels, and more should be obeyed, and lawyers will clearly spell out these codes in clear terms so that the crews will not accidentally violate them. In addition, hiring a lawyer is important to make sure that all payments are fair and are done on time. At the start of a project, different crews will pay each other for materials and equipment borrowed, and decide ahead of time who pays whom how much. If payments are late or entirely absent as the project goes on, a crew will use their lawyer to pursue this problem and find a solution. Late payments can hamper a project and create mistrust between the parties.

If a worker gets injured on the project’s work site, such as from slipping, a fire hazard, or exposure to harmful fumes or airborne particles, that worker may pursue workers’ compensation, and hiring a lawyer is a more effective way to go about that. This lawyer can point out the careless actions that led to the creation of that hazard, and the worker may receive compensation for any injuries suffered, especially if such injuries may prevent that worker from performing paying work in the future.

Another reason to hire a lawyer is if someone in a construction project commits wrongful termination of the entire project. And if there is clear and valid reason to end the project, such as repeated injuries or late payments, lawyers can be used for fair and much-needed paperwork to end the project.

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