Editor’s Column

This being my first column, I thought it might be useful to share some information about me both professionally and personally. I have been practicing solely construction law since my graduation from law school in 2002, and within that space have been exclusively focused on dispute resolution, arbitration, and litigation. I started my career with Watt, Tieder, Hoffar & Fitzgerald, LLP in McLean, Virginia, and then was one of the “Day 1” partners when Varela, Lee, Metz & Guarino, LLP (also in McLean, Virginia) opened its doors in 2014, and it is where I have practiced ever since. Over the course of the last 22 years, I have litigated disputes all over the country and internationally, and I have had the fortune to travel to some amazing places for hearings and preparatory work–-among others, Japan, Ireland, Singapore, Chile, and—last but certainly not least—New Jersey. Of course, I am allowed to kid about New Jersey because it is where I was born and raised and remains the place that I carry with me when I pronounce certain words like “water” and “poem.” While I could kind of hear my own accent with “water,” it was not until very recently that I learned that most people say “poe-ehm” and not “pome.” Very strange.

Outside of my career, I live in Arlington, Virginia, with my amazing wife Christine (a company-side labor and employment attorney), two fantastic children (ages 16 and 12), and our dog, Bruce (named after Bruce Springsteen, whom I have seen in concert over 30 times). Like all families, the kids keep us busy with sporting events, music lessons, and for the past few years, a healthy dose of teen and tween drama, but we have also had the opportunity to take some time away from the grind to visit new places and experience new things. Some highlights over the last couple of years have been trips to Montreal, Costa Rica, London, and Philadelphia (which was my son and me for WrestleMania 40 . . . that’s right).

Before turning to the content of this edition of The Construction Lawyer, I would like to extend my most sincere appreciation to Lauren Catoe, who served as Editor from 2021–2024 and with whom I worked as Associate Editor during that time. Lauren was an excellent leader with a great temperament and fantastic sense of humor. She steered The Construction Lawyer out of the COVID-19 pandemic (with its attendant logistical hurdles) and into the “digital-only” age all in three years. She was such a pleasure to work with, and I promise I will wait three more issues before asking her to write an article (okay, maybe two more issues). I will also shout out Susan Lorimor with ABA Publishing, with whom I have been working for the past two years and who makes editorial transitions like this one run so smoothly. Susan is such a pro and handles all aspects of publication with aplomb.

I would also like to extend appreciation to the current (and in some significant part new) editorial team for the next two years of The Construction Lawyer. The journal is in great hands with Rowan Mason (Ralls Gruber & Niece, San Francisco, California) as Associate Editor, and a Contributing Editor team of Hugh Brown (Fabyanske Westra Hart & Thomson, Minneapolis, Minnesota), Brandon Clark (Saul Ewing, LLP, Chicago, Illinois), Catherine Delorey (Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani, LLP, San Francisco, California), Jen Lowndes (Holland & Knight LLP, Orlando, Florida), and Daniel Rounds (Haynes Boone, LLP, Tysons Corner, Virginia).

Finally, I am thrilled to be working with a great Forum leadership team for 2024-25. I hope that you will read Keith Bergeron’s first column as Forum Chair, because it reflects what a thoughtful and gracious leader Keith will be for his term. He has some outstanding ideas for his time as Chair and appreciates both the past and the future of the Forum.

Turning to the content for this issue of The Construction Lawyer, we have three articles dealing with power–-two in the traditional construction sense and one in the legal procedure sense. The first of our two “traditional power” articles is “Getting to Net-Zero: How Climate Change Initiatives Are Changing Business in the Infrastructure Sector,” by Brendan Hennessey, Lazlo von Lazar, and Amanda Schermer MacVey. In this article, the authors explain some of the critical levers that will impact project development decision points as part of the infrastructure sector’s efforts to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions. The second article, “Guarding the Net of Uncertainty: Trends, Changes, and Challenges for Insuring Power Projects,” by Lynnette Roberts, Chase Johnson, and Christopher DeBruin, explains the important insurance and risk considerations associated with the development and construction of power projects.

Finally, the third article concerns “procedural power” and specifically home-court statutes, which are statutes that generally declare void any contract term requiring that disputes relating to a construction project be litigated or arbitrated in a state other than where the project is located. “Construction Home Court Statutes: Scope, Enforcement, and Preemption Under the Federal Arbitration Act,”by Daniel D. McMillan, Michael S. McCauley and David A. Hecker, is a thorough and careful assessment of such statutes and discusses practical implications, including the application of the Federal Arbitration Act to the laws. I cannot recall this home-court statute issue having previously been covered by The Construction Lawyer, and the subject is one that is an increasingly common concern regarding forum selection and choice of law. Thanks to each of our sets of authors for such quality content.

Again, I am very much looking forward to the next two years as Editor of The Construction Lawyer, providing my small contribution toward the Forum’s mission of “Building the Best Construction Lawyers,” and carrying on the great tradition of this journal.