Sheppard Mullin

Sheppard Mullin represents owners, developers, contractors, subcontractors, design professionals, governmental agencies, REITs, lenders and sureties in a broad range of domestic and international construction law matters relating to public and private projects. We offer a one-stop shop, advising clients from project inception to conclusion. Whether negotiating contracts or prosecuting and defending high-stakes disputes, we partner with our clients to realize their project goals.

Unlike many firms, we have maintained construction as a core practice with a large team of attorneys dedicated to meeting the global needs of our clients. We are proud to have assisted our clients with projects that range from the first major investment of a growing business to some of the largest and most sophisticated projects in the world.

Based on decades of work, our attorneys have earned respect as leaders in the field. Chambers USA, for example, has recognized our team for both the high quality and the remarkable range of our work, including our expansive client base. According to the guide, we have “built an excellent reputation for litigation, arbitration, mediation, contracts and mechanics’ lien law across a breadth of public and private projects.” The Legal 500 reports, “Clients value the firm’s combination of ‘outstanding service and practical advice with great insight into underlying legal issues’” and commends our “balanced practice.” PLC (Practical Law Company) also honored the firm by listing us as one of the top cross-border construction and projects firms.

Project and Infrastructure Advice

We advise clients in establishing the most appropriate business entity for a given project, as well as on licensing issues and on the unique aspects of public works projects. In addition, we negotiate with governmental agencies concerning entitlements, development rights, permitting and variances. Because environmental and land use issues permeate projects, we provide deep expertise in these areas to ensure the best possible assessment of our clients’ projects.

Our attorneys advise owners and contractors on the bidding and awarding of projects. We also prosecute and defend bid protests and, when appropriate, effectively coordinate outside support on behalf of an affected party.

We frequently advise developers, owners, contractors, and financing parties on construction-related contracts, including construction services, design/build, engineering/ procurement/construction (EPC), architectural or engineering services, and construction management, as well as all related subcontracts. Whether negotiating and drafting contracts or enforcing them in mediation, DRB proceedings, arbitration, litigation and other dispute resolution contexts, we help our clients secure the best possible results.

Our attorneys also work to ensure that a project or project participant is properly insured and/or bonded. We advise with respect to commercial general liability, course-of-construction property (builder’s risk) and professional liability insurance policies. We also advise on payment, performance and Miller Act bonds, including when these bonds should be obtained and how they function. We have experience both making claims on bonds and defending sureties and their principals.

Project Execution

We routinely provide project counsel services, advising clients on a myriad of issues that can arise during the course of the execution of construction, such as contract interpretation questions, work quality or delay issues, and relevant insurance coverages and claims, to name just a few examples.

Of course, dispute avoidance begins with good project management. Our experience handling construction disputes enables us to provide sound advice on how clients can avoid, informally resolve, and prepare to prosecute or defend claims. We help educate clients on how to properly document events so that the history is available to prove or defend potential claims. We also counsel clients on the handling of requests for information, unforeseen site conditions, change order proposals and scheduling conflicts.

Our attorneys offer training and compliance advice to help clients preserve their statutory rights with respect to the execution, recording and service of preliminary notices, mechanic’s liens, stop-payment notices and construction bonds, perfection of claims and, in the case of owners and lenders, disbursement obligations.

Dispute Management and Resolution

When disputes arise, we take every action necessary to help clients manage them and achieve early resolution when possible. We assist clients in mediated and informal negotiations, prepare clients for presentations before dispute review boards and other mid-contract dispute resolution mechanisms, and arbitrate limited issues even while a project is ongoing.

Unfortunately, not all disputes are resolved while a project is ongoing. We represent clients in all types of domestic and international arbitrations, litigations and mediations. Our experience includes disputes arising out of the development of power plants, oil processing facilities, roads, bridges, rail lines, airports, schools, libraries, water treatment and sewage disposal facilities, flood control stations, solar energy facilities, high rise office buildings, condominium projects, residential subdivisions and mixed-use developments, among many others. We resolve disputes pertaining to a broad range of issues, such as:

•  Extra and changed work claims
•  Delay, disruption and acceleration claims
•  Professional liability of architects, engineers and other professionals
•  Defective product/work claims
•  Process plant equipment and design issues
•  EPC and other design-build contracts
•  Green building issues
•  Bid protests
•  Mechanic’s liens, stop notice and bond claims
•  False claims

"As Sheppard Mullin continues to grow, it is important that we not lose sight of the need to recruit women, attorneys of color and others of diverse backgrounds."
-Guy Halgren, Chairman of the Executive Committee

At Sheppard Mullin, we make every effort to recruit the finest lawyers and nurture their talents. The firm recognizes the importance of diversity and the need to create a workplace of inclusion. We need ¿ and our clients demand ¿ a team of attorneys that is as diverse as our increasingly global client base. Achieving and maintaining diversity is key to great client service ¿ a core value of our firm. What distinguishes good intentions from results is a commitment by senior management to find the best attorneys possible coupled with the sincere belief that people with diverse backgrounds bring valuable attributes to the firm. At Sheppard Mullin, the Executive Committee, Diversity Committee, and the lawyers in each of our offices work hard to ensure that all attorneys who join our firm fit in seamlessly and are encouraged to succeed.

Members of our Diversity Committee include ethnically diverse attorneys and a representative from the firm's Executive Committee. Diversity Committee members have served on the Boards of the Anti-Defamation League, the Black Women Lawyers Foundation (Los Angeles), and the Charles Houston Bar Association (northern California). Women and minority attorneys participate on key committees of the Firm (Executive Committee; Compensation Committee; Diversity Committee; Recruiting Committee; Professional Personnel Committee; Associate Issues Committee). Four of the Firm's nine Office Administrative Partners are women, one of whom is African-American and another is multi-racial.

"Serving on the firm's Diversity Committee is one of the most important things I do. I firmly believe that we must be vigilant in our efforts to recruit talented women attorneys and attorneys of color. Our success in this area has a positive effect our firm's culture, practice and client relationships."
-Joan Story, Member Executive Committee and Diversity Committee

Below is a description of just some of our outreach efforts.

• The firm participates in and financially supports the California Minority Counsel Program and the ABA Minority Counsel Program, as well as several minority bar associations. These groups are dedicated to increasing access for and promoting and retaining minorities in the legal profession.
• The firm actively recruits law students of color, e.g., we participated in the National Black Law Students Association (NBLSA) of the Western Region job fair held at UCLA School of Law.
• Sheppard Mullin contributes to the Minority Corporate Counsel Association; California Women Lawyers; Queen's Bench; Black Women Lawyers Association of Los Angeles; and the National Black Law Students Association, among others.
• We actively participate with other major Los Angeles law firms in the Diversity Directors Roundtable, a group that is committed to promoting diversity in the legal profession and in our firms.
• The firm received the Law Firm Award from the Black Women Lawyers Association of Los Angeles Foundation for its strong commitment to the promotion of community and pro bono activities.
• Multicultural Law magazine named Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP as one of "The 2011 Top 100 Law Firms for Diversity."
• Sheppard Mullin helped underwrite the production of a motion picture project entitled "Soul of Justice: The Life and Times of Thelton Henderson." The film chronicles the life of respected African-American jurist Thelton Henderson, a crusading civil rights litigator and role model.
• The firm signed the Bar Association of San Francisco's "No Glass Ceiling Initiative," BASF's "Minority Goals and Timetables," the New York County Lawyers' Association Diversity Statement, and the Los Angeles County Bar Association's Diversity Statement.

Much of our pro bono work relates to the diversity of the communities in which we practice; sample clients include:

• Constitutional Rights Foundation
• Domestic Violence Project, Los Angeles Bar Association
• Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights
• Task Force for the Women's Resource Fair, City of San Diego
• Tolerance Through Education Program, Beverly Hills Barristers Associations
• Violence Against Women Act Program, Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles

Awareness of diversity enables us to understand the value of differences. At Sheppard Mullin, we are committed to hiring top tier attorneys, without regard to race, ethnicity, gender or sexual orientation.