July 2011 – Construction Law

K&L Gates’ Partners Found Illinois Chapter of Construction Owners Association of America

Jul 26 2011

Chicago partners Greg Andre and Dan Rosenberg have co-founded an Illinois chapter for the Construction Owners Association of America ("COAA"). An inaugural program is scheduled for October 6th at which Greg will lead a panel presenting on Integrated Project Delivery. Greg chairs the chapter’s Executive Committee and Dan chairs its Program Committee. Officers must be owner members and consist of representatives of the University of Chicago, University of Illinois, Exelon Corporation and Northwestern Memorial Hospital. COAA is national organization dedicated to providing education, information and networking for real estate owners with ongoing construction work. Its members consist primarily of educational and health care organizations, both of which are active in construction today.

For more information, please visit the COAA website, here, or contact any of the following people:

Preparing for Flying Blind: The Possible Effects of a Government Default on Government Contracts

Jul 08 2011

By: Lawrence M. Prosen, Joel S. Rubinstein, Tim L. Peckinpaugh, James T. Walsh, Andrew R. McFall & Christopher M. Smith, K&L Gates, Washington DC

Government shutdowns, while very uncommon, are no longer a completely unknown beast to government contractors (or at least the threats of them are not). Much has been written about their causes, effects, and the ways contractors can prepare for them. The current discussions about raising the debt ceiling, however, present a completely different, and unknown, challenge to government contractors. There is a very real fear that the gridlock in Congress may prevent a raising of the debt ceiling, forcing the government into default on its financial obligations. This would be a novel occurrence, a first for the U.S. government, with unknown consequences. The best-prepared contractors, however, will be the ones to weather the storm successfully and come out the other side better positioned in the marketplace, and in all possibility with significantly fewer competitors.

This Legal Insight is intended to make you aware of some of the unique aspects of a U.S. government default and its effects.

To continue reading, click here.

Are Prevailing Wages “Prevailing”? – GAO Report Finds Fault with Davis-Bacon Act Wage Determinations

Jul 01 2011

By: Lawrence M. Prosen, Samson Y. Chen, K&L Gates, Washington DC

On March 22, 2011, the United States Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) released a report (the “Report”) raising several issues with how the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) has been making Davis-Bacon Act wage determinations. This is a significant report, in that the Davis-Bacon Act plays a substantial role in federal and federally funded construction projects throughout the United States. The Davis-Bacon Act, located at 40 U.S.C. 3141 et seq., requires contractors on federally funded construction projects in excess of $100,000.00 to pay locally “prevailing wages” to their hourly paid field employees performing work on the project site. In other words, in order to bid on federal construction projects, construction contractors and subcontractors alike must pay their field employees at least as much as other construction workers in the area earn as determined by the DOL’s Wage-Hour Division. The Davis-Bacon Act’s stated purpose is to preserve local wage standards and promote local employment. This alert briefly highlights DOL’s problems in determining wage rates and summarizes GAO’s recommendations for improvement.

To continue reading, click here.

Archive:July 2011