Construction
National and regional clients involved in a wide range of construction projects turn to Stites & Harbison for top-flight credentials and practical, real-world experience. Our construction attorneys include former contractors, construction-firm owners, civil and mechanical engineers, and journeymen crafts-people. We understand the day-to-day workings of your business in addition to its legal issues.
From aviation and health care facilities to manufacturing and power plants, and from commercial buildings to highways, bridges and other infrastructure, Stites & Harbison’s Construction Service Group understands the critical legal issues that affect your projects.
Our construction lawyers have worked with clients on projects located from coast to coast. We negotiate contracts, assist clients with claim prevention and resolution, and counsel clients on transactions, complex litigation and regulation. We offer many years of experience in mediation and arbitration, both as client advocates and neutrals. Whatever your needs, we have a strong team to represent you, utilizing the broad knowledge and experience of the attorneys throughout our firm. We also understand your concerns about cost effective representation.
Recent Accomplishments:
The 2024 edition of Best Law Firms® has ranked Stites & Harbison as National Tier 1 for Litigation – Construction. Click here to see the full results.
Four Stites & Harbison attorneys are Fellows of the American College of Construction Lawyers.
- Stites & Harbison lawyers are LEED accredited professionals and members of the U.S. Green Building Council. We are here to help you meet the rigorous standards of green building.
- The Construction Lawyers Society of America (CLSA) recognized Stites & Harbison with the 2017 and 2018 CLSA Law Firm Award.
We give back to the industry in many ways. Stites & Harbison has represented the American Institute of Steel Construction, National Steel Bridge Alliance, Associated Builders and Contractors of Indiana/Kentucky, and the Associated General Contractors of Kentucky. We are also members of other industry organizations, serving as officers, board members, authors, and keynote speakers. Trade associations, professional societies, and members of the organized national construction bar regularly recruit us to provide articles and educational programs to their members. Our construction attorneys participated in the preparation of American Institute of Steel Construction Codes, Standards and Specifications, and have consulted with the American Institute of Architects and the Engineers Joint Contract Documents Committee on formation of these organizations’ standard construction documents.
Clients, construction trade associations and other industry organizations count on Stites & Harbison for help with a wide range of industry-related areas, including:
- Antitrust issues
- Bidding and procurement
- Contract disputes
- Corporate governance and membership
- Environmental
- Intellectual property
- Labor, employment, wage & hour and immigration law
- Legislation
- Lien enforcement
- OSHA and safety
- Payment disagreements
- State and federal tax code interpretation and enforcement
Other industry contributions from our Construction Law group include:
- "Chapters 18 & 19: Kentucky Construction Lien and Bond Law," Cassidy R. Rosenthal, Co-Author, Fifty State Construction Lien and Bond Law Book, Third Edition, 2016 Supplement
- "Chapter 6: Discovery by Interrogatories," William Geisen and Jessica A. Hill, Discovery Deskbook for Construction Disputes, Second Edition, ABA Forum on Construction Law, Editors: John M. Cook, Buckner Hinkle, Jr. and Alexander Moseley, 2015
- Kentucky Construction Law, written and edited by the construction attorneys of Stites & Harbison, published by HLK Global Communications, 2015.
- Discovery Deskbook for Construction Law Disputes – Robert M. Connolly is a chapter author, published by ABA Publishing, 2006.
With nationally recognized experience in construction law and hands-on experience in the business, we are uniquely qualified to address the needs of our construction clients.
A partial list of representative transactional and adversarial construction engagements in which the members of the group have been involved is listed below:
- Developed and negotiated design and construction contracts for owner/developer of $1 billion investment in manufacturing facilities in South Carolina
- Participated in the development of term sheets and EPC contracts for $3 billion coal gasification facility in Western Kentucky
- Drafted and negotiated design build contract for fracking sands plant
- Belk’s, Oxford, Miss. (2010)
- Best Buy, Gulfport, Miss. (2012)
- Camden Paces Apartments, Atlanta, Ga. (2013)
- Delta Wing, Opryland, Nashville, Tenn.
- Disney-MGM Studios Water Tower, Lake Buena Vista, Fla.
- Federal Express World Headquarters, Memphis, Tenn.
- GlaxoSmithKline, Memphis, Tenn.
- Holder Construction Company: Stites & Harbison's Atlanta offices
- Indiana-American Water Company, Jeffersonville, Ind.
- Lake Eola Condominiums, Orland, Fla.
- Lexington-Fayette Urban County Airport Board, (Blue Grass Airport, Lexington, Ky.)
- Lexington-Fayette Urban County Courts Facilities, Lexington, Ky.
- Lexington-Fayette Urban County Detention Facility, Lexington, Ky.
- Louisville Airport Improvement Program, Louisville, Ky.
- Louisville Slugger Museum, Louisville, Ky.
- Mercer University Center, Macon, Ga.
- National Corvette Museum, Bowling Green, Ky.
- National Steel Bridge Alliance, Miss.
- NCNB Tower, Tampa, Fla.
- One Atlantic Center (IBM building), Atlanta, Ga.
Future of the Corporate Transparency Act is Uncertain
With the January 1, 2025, deadline for beneficial ownership information filings pursuant to the Corporate Transparency Act (the “CTA”) for entities formed prior to 2024 rapidly approaching, Judge Amos L. Mazzant III of the US District Court for the Eastern District of Texas preliminarily enjoined the enforcement of the CTA and its related regulations nationwide. Alison Zeitlin takes a look at what is happening in this Stites & Harbison Client Alert.
Ten Stites & Harbison Attorneys Honored by 2024 Mid-South Super Lawyers
The 2024 edition of Mid-South Super Lawyers recently honored 10 Stites & Harbison, PLLC attorneys. Seven attorneys were named to the Super Lawyers list and three were named to the Rising Stars list.
Stites & Harbison Welcomes Nine Attorneys to Kentucky and Georgia
Stites & Harbison, PLLC announces the addition of nine attorneys to the firm. Four attorneys join the Louisville, Ky., office: Rachel Gumbel, Jackson B. Hurst-Sanders, James E. Myers and April M. J. Sain. Harper B. Anderson, Holly A. Couch and Robert H. Dean join the firm in Lexington, Ky., while Mackenzie Miller and Lauren Towell (Ren) join the Atlanta office.
Josh Chesser Joins Stites & Harbison in Nashville
Stites & Harbison, PLLC welcomes attorney Joshua K. Chesser (Josh) to the firm’s Nashville, Tenn., office. He joins the firm as a Member (Partner) in the Construction Service Group.
Regulated Products: What Manufacturers and Retailers Need to Know Now
Stites & Harbison attorneys Warren Schickli and Drake Staples take at a look at what manufacturers and retailers need to know in this Stites & Harbison complimentary webinar series focused on forever chemicals and what businesses need to do.
Stites & Harbison Earns 93 Rankings in 2025 Best Law Firms®
Stites & Harbison, PLLC has been ranked in the 2025 edition of Best Law Firms®. The firm’s National Tier 1 rankings include: Litigation – Construction, Litigation – Real Estate, and Trademark Law. The firm’s overall results include 93 metropolitan rankings in six regions and represent 52 legal practice areas.
Forever Chemicals: Breaking Down Insurance Coverages
Neil Barton and Charles Stopher present an overview of available insurance coverage and potentially applicable exclusions to the increased risk of PFAS exposure in the third session of Stites & Harbison's webinar series "Forever Chemicals: What does your business need to know and do?".
A Forever Chemicals Primer: When, Why, How, Who, and Where?
Part 1 of webinar series, "A Forever Chemicals Primer: When, Why, How, Who, and Where?," where attorneys Jennifer Cave and John Tate discussed identifying common commercial and industrial applications of PFSA; providing up-to-date human health and environmental testing data; and discuss state and federal regulatory status of forever chemcials.
Stites & Harbison, PLLC Achieves 2023-24 Mansfield Certification
Stites & Harbison, PLLC is pleased to announce that it has achieved 2023-24 Mansfield Certification. Mansfield is a year-long structured certification process designed for law firms to ensure all lawyers have an opportunity to advance into leadership.
2024 Construction Law Institute
Time: 7:45 a.m. - 4:15 p.m.
The Campbell House, 1375 South Broadway Road, Lexington, KY 40504
Construction attorney Bill Geisen is the Institute Chair and will give the Welcome announcement for the 2024 Construction Law Institute in Lexington on October 17, 2024. Attorneys Steven Henderson, Cassidy Rosenthal and J.P. Stilz will also be presenters at the event.
FTC Noncompete Rule Struck Down Nationwide
On Tuesday, August 20, 2024, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas entered an order preventing the FTC’s rule on noncompetes from going into effect nationwide. For the time being, employers do not need to comply with the FTC’s rule, which was scheduled to go into effect on September 4, 2024. Employment attorneys Shannon Hamilton, Robin McGuffin, and Zac Losey take a look at that decision in this Stites & Harbison Client Alert.
Stites & Harbison, PLLC Lawyers Named to 2025 Best Lawyers® Publications
Stites & Harbison, PLLC is pleased to announce that 97 of its lawyers are included in the 2025 edition of The Best Lawyers in America®. Since it was first published in 1983, Best Lawyers® has become universally regarded as the definitive guide to legal excellence according to the publication. Additionally, 12 Stites & Harbison attorneys are named as “Lawyer of the Year” and 30 attorneys are recognized in Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch® in America, which recognizes attorneys early in their careers for outstanding professional excellence in private practice in the United States.
Courts Now Split on Enforceability of FTC Noncompete Rule
On July 23, 2024, the Eastern District of Pennsylvania denied a company’s motion to enjoin the enforcement of the FTC’s rule banning nearly all noncompetes. This contradicts the Northern District of Texas’s order on July 3, 2024, which granted a preliminary injunction enjoining the rule as it applies to the plaintiffs in that case. With opposing rulings, employers remain in limbo as the rule’s September 4, 2024 enforcement date approaches. Employment attorneys Shannon Hamilton, Robin McGuffin, and Zac Losey take a look at what happened.
Richard Myers named Stites & Harbison's Nashville Office Executive Member
Stites & Harbison, PLLC has named attorney Richard S. Myers, Jr., as its Nashville and Franklin Office Executive Member. He succeeds Gregory D. Smith, who has served in this role for nine years.
FTC Non-Competition Final Rule Update
On July 3, 2024, a Texas federal Northern District Court granted a preliminary injunction to the Plaintiff and the four Intervening Plaintiffs in the matter of Ryan v. Federal Trade Commission. The preliminary injunction enjoins the Federal Trade Commission’s (“FTC”) Final Rule prohibiting non-competition agreements from being implemented and enforced as to the Plaintiff and Intervening Plaintiffs only. In addition, the Court enjoined the effective date of the Final Rule, again limiting the injunction to the Plaintiff and Intervening Plaintiffs only. Employment attorney Shannon Hamilton takes a look at the update in this Stites & Harbison Client
Department of Labor Overtime Rule Becomes Effective!
The Department of Labor’s (“DOL”) Final Rule increasing the salary level for exempt positions and increasing the number of employees eligible for overtime goes into effect today, July 1, 2024, for all 50 states, with the exception of the state of Texas as an employer. The Overtime Rule does apply to private employers in Texas. Employment attorney Shannon Hamilton takes a look at what that means to employers in this Stites & Harbison Client
News of the Death of Workers’ Jobs at the Virtual Hands of AI is Greatly Exaggerated
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is being touted as having the potential to save humanity or destroy it. On the saving side there is the possibility for drug discoveries, disease (e.g. cancer) diagnosis for early detection and cure, and energy discovery and efficiency. Stephen Weyer takes a look at the world AI in this Stites & Harbison Client
Stites & Harbison Ranks in Top 20 on 2024 "Best Place to Work in Kentucky" List
Stites & Harbison, PLLC ranks in the Top 20 “Best Places to Work in Kentucky” for 2024 in the medium company category. The firm has made the list 18 times — 10 of those in the Top 10.
Checking in on the Status of the Fair Labor Standards Act Exempt Salary Threshold Increase
It is a little under two weeks until the July 1, 2024, effective date for the U.S. Department of Labor’s Final Rule (the “Final Rule”) raising the minimum salary level requirement for exempt white-collar employees to $43,888 annually. Now is the time to check in on the status of any legal challenges which might effect that deadline and employment attorney Shannon Hamilton takes a look at those challenges in this Stites & Harbison Client
The Cost of Third- Party Data Breaches: How to Avoid a Financial Disaster
Time: 12:00 p.m. - 1:30 p.m.
Webinar
Chad McTighe and Sarah Spurlock will be the speakers for The Knowledge Group's Webinar on June 14, 2024 discussing the costs associated with unforeseen security risks.