Commercial Real Estate Law Situations Where Your Company May Benefit From Hiring an Attorney
When you conduct business in the commercial real estate and/or construction industry, a variety of legal situations may arise where you would benefit from an attorney’s advice. In some instances, you may want to have a commercial real estate attorney create or review contracts. You may also want to have an attorney explain the nuances of builders risk coverage. There are other situations that may arise where hiring a construction attorney is recommended or otherwise in your company’s best interests.
The Preferred Conflict-Management Strategy Within the Construction Industry
There are preferred conflict-management strategies within both the commercial real estate and construction industries. The American Arbitration Association, for example, indicates that alternative dispute resolution is the preferred method for construction-related conflicts. Just one of the reasons for this is that it takes less time to resolve issues in this manner rather than taking the matter to court.
In 2015, for example, the median time to complete this process was less than eight months. This includes the time period from when the paperwork is first filed to when the award was received.
Arbitrated Case Examples and Claim Amounts
Large as well as small cases have been successfully arbitrated by either one or more arbitrators. The largest case resolved by a single arbitrator, for example, was a claim for $232 million, as reported by the American Arbitration Association. A panel of three arbitrators handled the smallest case, which was tor a $23,000.00 claim.
As recently as 2015, there were 551 construction industry cases with claims of half-a-million dollars or more that were administered by the American Arbitration Association. The largest construction case that was mediated during this year amounted to $2.6 billion. In terms of the largest arbitration case, this was for $96 million. All of the claims and counterclaims for that year were valued at a total of $5.5 billion.
Expected Growth Within the Construction Industry
The overall construction industry reduced its workforce by 40% between April 2006 and January 2011. Given this workforce reduction, some companies may have required the services of an employment law firm or an attorney experienced in labor law.
Currently, however, the Bureau of Labor Statistics indicates that growth is projected for construction and extraction jobs. For the time period of 2016 to 2026, these types of occupations are expected to increase by 11%. This amounts to approximately 747,600 new jobs.
When to Hire a Commercial Real Estate Attorney
There are a variety of situations where hiring a commercial real estate attorney could be of benefit to your company. Whether you’re planning to purchase an existing structure, renovate an existing structure, or purchase commercial land to develop, consulting with an attorney makes good business sense. Furthermore, given all of the contracts and insurance required within this industry, a commercial real estate attorney will be able to assist your company with these vital documents.
