PRACTICAL CONSTRUCTION LAW COURSE CURRICULUM

1. Qualifying to Do Business
   1. Local vs. Out-of-State Corporation
   2. Registration in New State
   3. Joint Venture Considerations
   4. Business Licenses
   5. Sales and Use Taxes
   6. Consequences of Failure to Comply
   7. Cures for Failure to Comply
   
    
2. Types of Contracts
   1. Fixed-Price Competitively Bid
   2. Unit-Price Competitively Bid
   3. Cost-Plus Negotiated
   4. Limited-Cost-Plus Negotiated
   5. Design and Build
   6. Turnkey
   7. Construction Management
   
    
3. Bidding on Private Work
   1. Analyzing the Bid Invitation
   2. What to Look For and Out For
   3. “Information” Invitations
   4. Problem of Missing Elements
   5. Evaluation Standards-Price and Others
   6. Owner Rejection of All Bids
   7. Strict Bidding, Negotiation and Mixtures
   
    
4. Bidding on Public Work
   1. The “Low Bidder” Statutes
   2. Responsiveness of Bid
   3. Alternates in Invitations and Bids
   4. Variations in Public Procedures
   5. Politics, Influence, Ethics . . .Trouble
   
    
5. Mistakes in Bidding
   1. What Can Happen
   2. Bidder’s Unilateral Mistakes
   3. Bidder-Owner Mutual Mistakes
   4. Procedures for Relief
   5. Types of Remedies
   
    
6. Bid Bonds
   1. Bond Types and Terms
   2. Other Forms of Security
   3. Use in Private Work
   4. Use in Public Work
   5. Liability and Defenses
   
    
7. Payment and Performance Bonds
   1. Standard Bond Forms
   2. Scope of Coverage
   3. Who Eecovers and How
   4. Contractor Defenses to Liability
   5. Surety Defenses to Liability
   6. Rights of the Surety
   7. Indemnity Provisions
   
    
8. Standard Contract Forms
   1. Owner-Architect: AIA
   2. Owner-Engineer: NSPE
   3. Architect-Engineer: AIA and NSPE
   4. Architect-Contractor: AGC
   5. Owner-Contractor: AIA, NSPE and AGC
   6. Contractor-Subcontractor: AIA
   7. Construction Management: AIA and AGC
   8. State & Municipal Provisions
   9. Similarities and Differences in Forms
   10. What to See and What to Avoid
   
    
9. Uniform Commercial Code
   1. What Is It
   2. Application to Construction Work
   3. Application to Equipment
   4. Application to Subcontracts
   5. Avoiding the Code
   6. Effect on Contract Formation
   7. Effect on Contract Terms
   8. Unconscionability
   9. Commercial Impracticability
   10. Validity of Liability Disclaimers
   11. Warranties
   
    
10. Interpreting the Contract
    1. Rules of Interpretation
    2. Contract’s “Four Corners”
    3. Parties’ Intent
    4. Concurrent Interpretation
    5. Custom and Usage
    6. Technical Terms
    7. Grammatical Errors
    8. Specific vs. General
    9. Mention One/Exclude Others
    10. Reasonable and Consistent Analysis
    11. Avoiding Useless Performance
    12. Contract as a Whole
    13. Interpretation Against Drafter
    14. Evidence Outside the Contract
    15. Implied Terms
    
     
11. Authority and Responsibility
    1. Actual and Apparent Authority
    2. Who Can Bind Whom
    3. Owner/Architect/Contractor Representatives
    4. Contract Interpretation Authority
    5. Authority to Order Performance
    6. Ordering Contract Changes
    7. Prescribing Authority Limits
    8. Preventing Unauthorized Acts
    9. Owner/Architect Supervision, Coordination and Cooperation
    10. Failure to Enforce Contract
    
     
12. Contract Changes
    1. Owner’s Right to Change Work
    2. Contractor’s Duty to Perform
    3. Owner/Contractor Agree Changes
    4. Owner’s Unilateral Change Orders
    5. The “Constructive” Change
    6. Defective Plans and Specifications
    7. Erroneous Interpretation
    8. Higher Standard of Work
    9. Improper Rejection
    10. Dictating Performance Methods
    11. Impossibility/Impracticability
    12. Contractor’s Protest Before Performance
    13. Remedies
    
     
13. Changed (Differing Site) Conditions
    1. Pre-Bid and Post-Bid Conditions
    2. Physical and Non-Physical Conditions
    3. Man-Made Conditions
    4. Conditions Below Ground
    5. Latent Above-Ground Conditions
    6. Owner’s Fraud; Concealment
    7. Owner’s Innocent Misrepresentation
    8. Site Investigation and Other Inquiry
    9. Reliance on Owner’s Data
    10. Notice by Contractor
    11. Contractor Duty to Perform
    12. Remedies
    
     
14. Delays and Acceleration
    1. Scheduling Techniques
    2. Agreement on the Schedule
    3. Schedule Revisions
    4. Notice of Delays
    5. Unexcusable Delays
    6. Damages for Delay
    7. Excusable Delays
    8. Suspensions of Work
    9. Time Extensions
    10. Dollar Recovery
    11. Elements of Acceleration
    12. Recovery for Acceleration
    
     
15. Calculating Damages
    1. Basic Principles of Recovery
    2. Damages Aspects of Changes, Changed Conditions, Delays, Aacceleration
    3. Labor Costs
    4. Material Costs
    5. Equipment Costs
    6. Other Direct Costs
    7. Inefficiency Factors
    8. Disruption Costs
    9. Costs of Unchanged Work
    10. Field Overhead
    11. Home Office Overhead
    12. Extended Overhead
    13. Loss of Business
    14. Loss of Bonding Capacity
    15. Profit
    
     
16. Subcontract Provisions
    1. Tying Subcontractor to Contractor’s Liability
    2. Flow-Down Clauses
    3. Scope of Work Clauses
    4. Modification Clauses
    5. Payment Clauses
    6. Indemnity Clauses
    7. Default Clauses
    8. Disputes Clauses
    9. Special Provisions
    
     
17. Subcontract Administration
    1. Bid Shopping Risks
    2. Subcontractor's Bid withdrawal
    3. Firms Subcontractor Bids
    4. Subcontractor's Obligations
    5. Monitoring Sub's Performance
    6. Contractor’s Coordination Duty
    7. Contractor’s Cooperation
    8. Subcontractor's Access to Site
    9. Job Site Conditions
    10. Disputes Between Subcontractors
    
    
18. Subcontractor Defaults
    1. Assistance to Defaulting
    2. Financing the Subcontractor
    3. Reletting Subcontractor's Work
    4. Sub's Performance Bond Surety
    5. Notice and Demand on Surety
    6. Surety Defenses
    7. Irresponsible Sureties
    8. Payments to Sub-subs,Suppliers
    9. Monitoring Sub’s Payments
    10. Contractor’s Direct Payments
    11. Avoiding “Double Payments”
    12. Lien and Bond Releases
    13. Sub’s Payment Bond Surety
    
     
19. Owner Inspection and Acceptance
    1. Formal Acceptance
    2. Punch-List Problems
    3. Implied Acceptance
    4. Acceptance of Defective Work
    5. Effect of Failure to Reject
    6. Impact of Interpretations
    7. Certificate of Final Completion
    8. “Substantial Performance” Doctrine
    9. “Economic Waste” Principle
    
     
20. Contractor Warranties
    1. Workmanship Warranties
    2. Construction Warranties
    3. Analysis of Warranty Clauses
    4. Major and Minor Coverage
    5. Implied Warranties
    6. Proof of Warranty Breach
    7. Owner’s Waiver of Warranty
    
     
21. The Sick Owner
    1. Payment Problems
    2. Bankruptcy of Owner
    3. Rights Against Construction Lender
    4. Lender’s “Inducements”
    5. Preventing Foreclosure
    6. Creditor’s Rights
    7. Practical Bail-Out Possibilities
    
     
22. Preparation of Claims
    1. Documentation Systems
    2. Daily Logs
    3. Use of Tape Recorders
    4. Polaroid Photos
    5. Notices, Letters and Memos
    6. Experts
    7. Charts and Graphs
    8. Models and Samples
    9. Coordinating Visual Aids
    10. Your Lawyer-When and How
    
     
23. Negotiating Settlements
    1. When to Negotiate
    2. How to Prepare
    3. Selecting Your Team
    4. Analyzing the Opposition
    5. Negotiation Techniques
    6. Morals and Manners
    7. Last Ditch Positions
    8. Memorandum of Agreement
    
     
24. Arbitration of Disputes
    1. Owners/Subs/Other Primes Disputes
    2. Federal Arbitration Act
    3. State Arbitration Statutes
    4. Common Law Arbitration
    5. Contract Arbitration Clauses
    6. Arbitration Procedures
    7. Enforcement and Challenge of Award
    8. Effect on Continuing Performance
    9. Waiver of Arbitration Rights
    10. Disadvantages of Arbitration
    
     
25. Relief in the Courts
    1. Federal and State Courts
    2. Where to Go
    3. Lien Rights and Limitations
    4. Jury or Non-Jury Trial
    5. The Discovery Tool
    6. Presenting the Evidence
    7. Practical Considerations
    8. Types and Extent of Relief