Guest speaker shines light on construction law

FORT LEONARD WOOD, Mo. (Feb. 18, 2016) -- Members of the U.S. Army Engineer School plan to focus on construction contracting during their upcoming guest speaker program event, which is scheduled from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Feb. 25.

Michael Hanahan, a leading attorney and partner with Schiff Hardin, a Chicago-based construction law firm, will present "Building with outside contractors: How the contracts can work for you," in Lincoln Hall Auditorium on post.

According to Capt. Sean Davis, USAES speaker program manager, it is important for engineers to understand construction contracting.

"Military construction and contingency construction projects have either been stymied or successful based on the language in the contract," Davis, a Texas native, said. "Mr. Hanahan's expertise will arm engineer leaders with the knowledge to make informed decisions when planning a construction project."

Hanahan's training as an architect and experience with design and construction contracts, for both government entities and private organizations, gives him a unique perspective, added Davis, who in his five years with the Army, has gained some construction experience working with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Far East District.

Hanahan, who is an adjunct professor of construction law at the University of Illinois at Chicago, said he was contacted by the Army to speak based on his audio lectures being discovered by members of the profession.

"I audio tape my UIC lectures so my students and others can listen and learn about construction law," Hanahan said. "My goal is to make the law more understandable and to break it down into chunks of information that are based on real-world examples."

During his lecture at Fort Leonard Wood, Hanahan said he plans to cover what the design professional/engineer's role is in traditional private construction, as opposed to how things work when it is a military project.

"My goal is to educate the audience of their role when interacting with private contractors and make sure the project that is built is the same as the project the design professional/engineer designed," said Hanahan, who holds a bachelor's degree in architecture from the University of Notre Dame and a juris doctor degree from Loyola University Chicago School of Law.

Hanahan further explained why his presentation is relevant to military engineers.

"As I understand it, with a traditional military project, if something is not built correctly, an order is given to correct the error and it is remedied. Such is the structure of military protocol," he said. "In the private sector, the process of correcting defects or changing the work is much more complicated. Change orders need to be issued, questions arise whether there was a design error or a construction error, and who is responsible for different aspects of the solution. During this process the design professional has a more integrated and active role."

Hanahan said he will address the engineer's role when dealing with construction outside of military protocol.

"My goal is to educate the audience, as more and more, the Army is asked to interface with private contractors when the projects involve rebuilding areas that were damaged or destroyed as a result of combat," he said. "Or, there may be cases where the military is simply building a facility for themselves and looks to outside contractors to perform the work."

Hanahan, who has taught for a number of years at the University of Notre Dame, UIC, and regularly speaks at legal conferences, said he welcomes the opportunity to present to the Engineer Regiment.

"I always look for feedback from the audience as to whether my lecture gave them something to think about, or taught them something they did not know," he said. "In the end, my profession is to advise my clients on how they should act in specific situations and how to balance the risks that exist in a given project or transaction. The same is true here. If some of the attendees walk out a little bit more aware and a bit wiser, then I have met my goals."

Outside agencies and leaders with an interest in construction contracting are welcome to attend.

Following this event, two more lectures are scheduled to take place as part of the 2015-2016 guest speaker program series themed, "Engineering for Tomorrow," Davis said.

"By the end of the year, students should have an overview of the most current topics in the engineering world and be able to integrate that knowledge into the force at large," according to Davis.

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