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Construction & Engineering
Practice

Practice Profile

Alexander Holburn Beaudin & Lang LLP's Construction & Engineering Practice helps clients anticipate and address the many issues that accompany land acquisition,  development and construction. 

For B.C.'s construction industry, the extensive infrastructure development mandate in preparation for 2010, combined with continued strong activity in the residential sector means issues of capacity and fulfillment loom large for all parties in the coming business cycle.  In this pressure-laden climate we provide clients with sound proactive counsel on all aspects of the construction process.

Our clients represent every facet of the construction industry from owners, large land developers and construction companies to architects, engineers, and other construction professionals. 

We help engineers and engineering firms structure their activities, and respond to issues and claims arising out of their work.  We advise construction clients with respect to projects ranging in size from hydroelectric dams, oil and gas projects and pipelines to raw land development and strata title property.  We have extensive experience with builders liens, tender disputes, contracts, delay and extra claims and insurance and bond claims.

Construction Documentation

We negotiate, structure and draft construction documents, including:

• Standard commercial and governmental forms
• Design/build agreements
• Project and construction management agreements
• Prime, trade and material supply contracts
• Consultants’ agreements
• Bonding facilities and insurance policies

Risk Management

We help our clients manage the risk inherent in any construction project, whether undertaken by them or upon property owned or managed by them.  We are experienced in developing contractual options to allocate risk as well as providing mechanisms for dispute resolution, appropriate insurance coverage and the requisite bonding.  Our aim is to provide you with creative solutions to minimize risk and educate you on how to avoid future problems.

For engineering professionals, we have recently introduced Foundations™, the risk-management review specifically designed for engineers.  You work relentlessly to protect others from risk.  Now there is a package specifically designed to protect you.

Dispute Resolution

We help you resolve disputes, whether you need to negotiate, mediate, arbitrate or litigate.  We bring significant experience and capability to the table, and our lawyers have appeared in every level of Court in Canada.  While litigation is sometimes unavoidable, we focus on structuring appropriate contractual approaches to dispute resolution and help clients resolve disputes before they reach the Courts. 

We deal regularly with the following matters:

• Builders lien disputes
• Contractual interpretation issues during construction
• Progress draws and completion issues
• Delay and extra claims
• Third party claims for business interruption or damage
• Insurance and bond claims handling

Builders Liens? We Wrote The Book.

Members of our Construction & Engineering Law Practice Group authored and regularly update the Annotated British Columbia Builders Lien Act, an important reference tool for  British Columbia construction law practitioners.  In addition, we publish a chapter in the Builders Liens Practice Manual, as well as regular columns on current construction law issues in Business in Vancouver, the Journal of Commerce, and ConstructionBusiness magazine.  Why?  Because a better informed industry is a better functioning industry, and because maintaining ongoing dialogue with all members of the industry, not just our clients, helps us to serve you better.  That is also why you will find us actively involved with several industry groups like the Vancouver Regional Construction Association, the B.C. Construction Association and the Surety Association of Canada, to name a few.  

Representative Matters

• Negotiated design/build contract for significant renovation of major public health facility
• Negotiated dismissal of 15 separate lien actions representing several million dollars in claims on behalf of the property owner in a B.C. land development project
• Resolved a large performance and labour and materials bond claim involving a First Nations reserve-based school in another Western Canadian province
• Acted for an architect in multimillion dollar delay claim
• Developed a set of standardized engagement contracts for an engineering firm