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Design-Build Projects: Key Issues; Drafting to Mitigate Risk for Contractors, Design Professionals, and Owners

Defining the Parties Relationship; Standard of Care; Performance Warranties; Licensing Requirements; and More

Recording of a 90-minute CLE video webinar with Q&A

This program is included with the Strafford CLE Pass. Click for more information.
This program is included with the Strafford All-Access Pass. Click for more information.

Conducted on Tuesday, February 13, 2024

Recorded event now available

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This CLE webinar will provide practitioners with an in-depth look at the design-build project delivery method. The expert panel will provide insight into issues unique to each project participant involved in a design-build project, as opposed to the more traditional design-bid-build method, and describe best practices for customizing the project agreement to mitigate risk for owners, contractors, and design professionals.

Description

The design-build project delivery method is popular due to the potential time and cost savings it may provide the owner. However, it presents unique project planning issues and contractual drafting considerations for owners, contractors, and design professionals as compared to the traditional design-bid-build method. Counsel representing all parties should be aware of these differences so that they can best customize the project agreement to protect their clients, even if beginning with form documents.

For instance, in design-build projects, the relationship among the parties is unique in that the design professional is the contractor's teammate, not the owner's consultant. Therefore, the duties owed among the project participants differ from the traditional model. Where the designer may have worked directly for the owner and acted primarily in the owner's interests to protect them from defects in the contractor's work, under the design-build model, the designer has financial counterincentives to making the owner aware of construction problems. Therefore, the owner may want to set up checks and balances in the contract's terms.

Other considerations that differ from the traditional method are the standard of care owed by the designer compared to the contractor which may change from the ordinary duty of care owed by the traditional design professional to a more stringent standard typically expected of the contractor. Furthermore, where the contractor traditionally is asked to warrant the results of their work, not the overall success of the project, the design-build contractor may be required to warrant most of the project's performance.

Listen as our expert panel provides an in-depth look at the design-build project delivery method. The panel will provide insight into issues unique to each project participant and describe best practices for customizing the project agreement to mitigate risk for owners, contractors, and design professionals.

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Outline

  1. Introduction: overview of the design-build project delivery method
  2. Issues unique to design-build projects vs. design-bid-build projects
    1. Relationship between the project participants and duties of loyalty
    2. Standard of care
    3. Performance warranties
    4. Entitlement to change orders
    5. Licensing requirements
    6. Insurance/bonding considerations
  3. Taking the issues into account: project agreement drafting considerations
    1. Team structure
    2. Financial terms
    3. Risk shifting and legal liabilities
    4. Design phase services
    5. Construction phase services
    6. Insurance/indemnity
    7. Dispute resolution
    8. Other considerations
  4. Practitioner takeaways

Benefits

The panel will review these and other important considerations:

  • What are the advantages and disadvantages to using the design-build project delivery method as compared to the more traditional design-bid-build method?
  • How does the relationship between the parties, including standard of care, differ using the design-build method?
  • What business considerations are unique to the design-build method, such as licensing requirements and insurance/bonding?
  • What are unique terms and best practices for drafting design-build project agreements to best protect each project participant?

Faculty

Leonello, Justin
Justin Leonelli

Attorney
K&L Gates

Mr. Leonelli’s practice focuses on dispute resolution and strategic counseling in the areas of construction and...  |  Read More

Wickard, William
William D. Wickard

Of Counsel
K&L Gates

Mr. Wickard concentrates his practice on construction and commercial litigation along with negotiating and drafting...  |  Read More

Wolf, Emma
Emma R. Wolfe

Partner
K&L Gates

Wolfe is a member of the Construction and Infrastructure practice group. She focuses her practice on assisting clients...  |  Read More

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