Highlights of Recent Experience

     The firm of Conway & Mrowiec practices exclusively in the area of construction and public contract law and litigation. Because of this concentration, Conway & Mrowiec is able to offer more cost-effective and time efficient results. The firm has addressed a myriad of issues on all types of construction projects under various project delivery systems, giving our clients the benefit of that experience.

      In the last four years alone, among the construction issues addressed by Conway & Mrowiec are:

  1. Project-Wide Subcontractor Close-Outs

    1. Power Plant.    Defending against more than thirty lower-tier claims totaling more than $20 million on behalf of international EPC contractor on suspended power plant involving bankrupt owner.
    2. Retail/Hotel Complex.    Litigated and mediated disputes for developer under GMP contract for construction of an upscale retail/hotel complex. Issues involve alleged acceleration, disputes regarding scope of the GMP and owner direct payment to subcontractors. Result was savings of over $7 million from face amount of claims.
    3. Jail.    On behalf of performance bond surety for wrongfully terminated general contractor litigated and negotiated subcontractor claims, litigated with public owner and against owner=s architect (as subrogee of owner). Recovery of over $13 million from Owner, architect and subcontractors resulting in net positive surety recovery.
    4. Office & Warehouse Complex.    On behalf of general contractor, litigated and negotiated subcontractor claims and litigated with public owner on new construction of office and warehouse complex. The project grew by change orders and claims from $53 million to $87 million and from two years to five years. Recovery of $13.25 million from Owner and release from all subcontractors resulting in profitable project despite two separate litigations.
    5. Cultural Complex.    Successfully mediated with owner a multimillion dollar dispute under a GMP contract for the construction of a cultural complex. Savings, the scope of post-construction audits, and the application of contingencies were among the issues mediated. Assisted client in resolving all subcontractor claims.
    6. Bank.    Successfully mediated dispute with owner under GMP contract for construction of a bank on behalf of general contractor and resolved subcontractor claims. Issues concerned delay and additional project managements expenses, disputed changes and contractor's entitlement for corrective costs of subcontractor error as "cost of work."
    7. School.    Currently representing assignee of insolvent general contractor of school project in defense of over thirty subcontractor claims and prosecution of contractor's delay claim against public owner.

  2. Recent Multi-Million Dollar Mechanics Lien Claims

    1. PowerPlant; Priority.    Prosecuted mechanics lien claim, priority dispute and bankruptcy litigation for international design/builder on suspended power plant mechanics lien issues involving eight figure amount owing and defending against more than thirty claims.
    2. Condominium.    Defending on behalf of mezzanine lender multi-million dollar mechanics lien claim of general contractor primarily comprised of extended duration claim.
    3. Concert Pavilion.    Prosecuting eight figure mechanics lien, payment bond and contract claims of steel fabricator-erector on monumental concert pavilion.
    4. Gasoline Refinery.    "Constructively Fraudulently" Overstated Lien Claim. Defended EPC contractor against claim by piping installer on reformulated gasoline refinery project. After jury trial on subcontract claim, trial judge held a separate bench trial on mechanics lien issues. After the bench trial, the court ruled that subcontractor-claimant's $3.3 million mechanics lien must be stricken as being fraudulently overstated. Conway & Mrowiec obtained cost information and testimony of claimant's outside accountant that subcontractor's losses were less than one-third of claim; the jury awarded only the true losses and court ruled lien claim of three times recovery was overstated nullifying the claim.
    5. Telecommunications Facilities.    Multi-State Mechanics Liens & Customer Bankruptcy. For design-builder of telecommunications facilities, recovered over $5 million (97 percent of amount claimed), despite bankruptcy of customer. Filed mechanics lien claims in 11 different states, followed by months of contested proceedings in the customer's bankruptcy case regarding issues of post-petition lender's "superpriority" lien and other issues.
    6. Underground Telecommunications Lines.    For installer of telecommunications lines, pursued claims of mechanics liens, payment bond and failure to procure adequate bond against public fee owners and private asserted license holder involving cases in multiple courts. Involved in contested proceedings with lender in customer's bankruptcy case resulting in successful settlement and payment to client of over $5 million.
    7. Steel Plant.       Incorrect Legal Description & "3 Year Rule". Litigated as special mechanics lien co-counsel on behalf of EPC contractor of steel plant in owner's bankruptcy to attempt to save $12 million mechanics lien claim prepared by another firm containing incorrect legal description. Delaware bankruptcy court agreed with our arguments on legal description.
    8. Mixed-Use High Rises.    Prepared and prosecuted multi-million dollar mechanics lien on sixty-story residential condominium, twenty-seven story hotel, retail and parking mixed-use structure recovering $3 million.
    9. High Rise Condominium/Retail/Parking Garage.    Prepared and prosecuting multi-million dollar mechanics lien claim on 64-story residential condominium, retail and parking garage in complex vertical subdivision.
    10. Hotel.    Prepared lien claim and successfully negotiated over $2 million recovery for subcontractor at resort hotel.
    11. Hospital (Priority Dispute).    Prepared and prosecuting foreclosure of lien claims for general contractor with multi-million dollar claim and priority dispute with mortgagee in owner bankruptcy.
    12. Retail/Hotel Highrise.    Litigating more than $25 million in mechanics lien claims filed by prime contractor, subcontractors and design professionals on behalf of separate retail and hotel owners and lenders on vertical subdivision. Issues include incorrect property descriptions, failure to allocate and overstated claims.
    13. Assisted Living Center (Priority Dispute).    Litigated on behalf of general contractor lien priority dispute recovering over owner's mortgagee on abandoned construction of assisted living facility.
    14. Hotel (Priority Dispute).    Litigated on behalf of trade contractor priority dispute with mortgagee.
    15. High Rise Office Tenant Build-Out.    Successfully recovered entire claim of general contractor in settlement of foreclosure of mechanics lien claim against building owner where tenant defaulted.
    16. Hospital.    Prepared lien claims for general contractor for multi-million dollar receivable on multiple contracts. Owner paid claims in full at closing of sale of hospital.
    17. Resort Hotel.    Litigating mechanics lien claim on behalf of subcontractor on hotel renovation. Overcame summary judgment motion on "no lien" subcontract language.
    18. Lien Drafting.    Conway & Mrowiec has drafted and litigated over two hundred mechanics lien claims on public and private projects in Illinois and throughout the United States in the last four years alone. Among the complex issues addressed include priority, the lienability of various services, multiple contracts, the allocation of amounts due and completion dates on complex multi-owner projects such as condominiums, mixed use and shopping center projects, and "last day of work" issues.

  3. Delay Claims

    1. Retail/Hotel Complex.    Litigated and successfully mediated on behalf of developer dispute with contractor under GMP contract for construction of an upscale retail/hotel complex. Issues involve alleged acceleration, disputes regarding scope of the GMP and owner direct payment to subcontractors.
    2. Stadium.    Prosecuted and settled delay and labor productivity claim for trade contractor on National Football League stadium.
    3. Gasoline Refinery.    Successfully defended EPC contractor of gasoline refinery from multi-million dollar claims of piping subcontractor for alleged delays, reduced labor productivity and changes at jury trial. The dispute involved a fixed price subcontract based on schematic design with detailed change methodology once the design was completed and the effect of numerous signed change orders thereafter. Additional issues included the subcontractor's flawed estimating and claim pricing disproportionate to costs actually incurred.
    4. Convention Center.    Prepared acceleration claim for trade contractor on severely delayed convention center project resulting in conversion of lump sum with monthly progress payment trade contract to T&M with weekly payment in advance contract.
    5. University Dormitory.    A major renovation project resulted in a multimillion dollar dispute among a university, a general contractor, an architect and the major trade contractors. We were able to convince all parties to agree to mediation. At the mediation, the owner and general contractor were each able to recognize the pass-through nature of most of the claims, allowing the settlement to be funded by the trade contractors and design consultants who were in fact responsible for the delays and additional costs.
    6. School Renovation.    On behalf of general contractor, defeated electrical subcontractor's large delay claim by showing bid errors and erroneous manpower loading assumptions despite owner-caused delays on three school-building renovation project.
    7. Chemical Plant.    A federal district court in Chicago upheld our arguments regarding cumulative impacts and exceptions to a no-damages-for-delay clause on a chemical processing plant project. Our cumulative impact theory permitted a contractor to recover losses of productivity due to multiple changes and delays without allocating a specific amount of loss to each event.
    8. Renovation of Industrial to Condominium.    Successfully settled immediately before commencement of scheduled multi-week arbitration hearing a delay dispute concerning fourteen-story condominium and retail project. The dispute involved determining multiple causes of delay to achievement of all milestones on a multi-milestone project. Our contractor client paid nothing on owner's claim of more than $3.5 million in liquidated damages and contractor recovered all extended site overhead costs.
    9. Church.    Successfully arbitrated award of 100% recovery for contractor's extended site and home office overhead delay claim on church project despite owner's argument that contractor failed to comply strictly with damages quantification provision of contract.
    10. School Renovation.    Settled, during fourth week of arbitration, delay and change order claims involving school construction, resulting in payment to contractor of 75% of contractor client's claim and nothing to owner.
    11. New School.    Currently prosecuting delay claim on new 'high design' school.
    12. Retail-Hotel Complex.    Prosecuting on behalf of developer delay claim against architect of twenty-story retail and hotel project.
    13. Water Treatment Plants.    Prosecuting delay and stand-by claims of electrical subcontractor on seven water treatment plants with construction administered by Army Corps of Engineers.

  4. Differing Site Conditions

    1. Condominium. Represented foundation contractor in successful defense of developer's delay claims arising from differing site conditions on high-rise residential condominium and prosecution of mechanics lien claim.
    2. Bridge. Represented foundation contractor in successful recovery of claims of unpaid lump sum payments and Type II differing site condition and defended against defense and counterclaim of alleged overpayment of unit prices and delay on highway bridge construction project.
    3. Condominium. Successfully arbitrated dispute for foundation contractor regarding differing subsurface soils conditions and defense of developer delay claim with foundation contractor recovering 100% of claim plus interest and wholly defeating counterclaim through post-judgment collection.
    4. Library. Represented excavator in successful recovery of differing site condition claim against public owner involving underground water.
    5. Bridge. Successfully recovered for foundation contractor for subsurface obstacles against defense of Owner adverse determination on highway bridge construction project after settlement reached during trial.
    6. Condominium. Successfully recovered entire claim of unit price extras resulting from differing site conditions for foundation contractor against developer of mixed-use condominium project.

  5. Cost Plus with GMP Contracts

    1. Retail/Hotel Complex. Litigated and successfully mediated on behalf of developer dispute with contractor under GMP contract for construction of an upscale retail/hotel complex. Issues involve alleged acceleration, disputes regarding scope of the GMP and owner direct payment to subcontractors.
    2. Cultural Complex. Successfully mediated a multimillion dollar dispute under a GMP contract for the construction of a cultural complex. Savings, the scope of post-construction audits, and the application of contingencies were among the issues mediated.
    3. Bank. Successfully mediated dispute under GMP contract for construction of a bank on behalf of general contractor. Issues concern delay and additional project managements expenses, disputed changes and contractor's entitlement for corrective costs of subcontractor error as 'cost of work.'
    4. Research Laboratory. Successfully litigated on behalf of construction manager against claim of purported subcontractor for 'wrongful' termination and 'tortious interference' with subcontractor's relationship with institutional owner. Beyond denying the allegations, Conway & Mrowiec employed the incorporation of termination for convenience provision and 'privilege to interfere' concept to truncate the litigation.
    5. Numerous GMP Contracts. Drafted more than 30 'cost plus with GMP' contracts including provisions establishing GMP without completed design versus adding GMP after design developed, contingency, line item versus project savings, multiple milestones, definition of 'cost of work' and significant scope addition by later change order.

  6. Public Contract Issues

    1. Affirmative Action. After five-week trial, trial court entered judgment finding City of Chicago's MBE/WBE program to be unconstitutional.
    2. Affirmative Action. Following oral argument, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a trial court judgment finding the County of Cook's MBE/WBE program to be unconstitutional. The trial court's ruling was entered after a month-long trial.
    3. Airport. The City of Chicago attempted to enforce its dispute resolution provision against a contractor. Based on the City's prior, material breaches, however, we convinced a judge not to enforce that provision. This result protected the contractor from the 'final and binding' decision of the City's own purchasing agent.
    4. Hospital. Successfully protested award of contract to low bidder on competitively bid public hospital project. The low bid bore an unauthorized signature and contained material exceptions to contract terms, but public owner argued its home rule status permitted the owner to waive the variances. After our opposition to motion to dismiss and deposition of procurement officer, owner agreed to relief requested by client second low bidder to re-bid.
    5. Maintenance Contract. Currently prosecuting claim against state department of transportation concerning unit price quantity underruns based on Owner's incorrect quantity estimate on maintenance contract.
    6. Underground Accelerator. Successfully prosecuted Miller Act and contract claims by supplier of low strength fill pipe insulating material on Department of Energy laboratory.

  7. Design Errors & Omissions

    1. Retail/Hotel Complex. Representing owner in defense of architect and engineer fee claims and prosecution of counterclaims for errors and omissions resulting in millions of dollars of additional construction costs.
    2. Hotel. Represented design professional in defense of owner's claim of errors and omissions.

  8. Contract Drafting and Review

    1. Owner-Contractor Agreements. Conway & Mrowiec has drafted and negotiated hundreds of Owner-Contractor Agreements, EPC, General Conditions, Supplementary Conditions and Pre-Construction Agreements using 'lump sum' and 'cost plus' formats with and without final construction documents using customized and standard American Institute of Architects, Engineer Joint Document Committee, Design-Build Institute and Associated General Contractor forms and national owner forms as base documents.
    2. Subcontracts and Purchase Orders. Conway & Mrowiec has drafted extensive subcontracts, Purchase Orders, Trade Contracts and Equipment Usage agreements for use by general contractors, trade contractors and 'agency' construction managers.
    3. Design-Build Agreements. Conway & Mrowiec has drafted custom design-build agreements using variations of Design-Build Institute, American Institute of Architects and Associated General Contract design-build forms as a base.

  9. Insurance Claims

    1. Crane Collapse. Representation of concrete contractor on tender of defense and indemnity to Owner-Controlled Insurance Program's liability insurer, contractor=s comprehensive general liability insurer and property insurer including prosecution of coverage action against property insurer for claims by crane supplier to contractor of destruction and rent and prosecution of contractor's acceleration and payment claim and litigating with OCIP builder's risk carrier regarding delayed and inadequate payment after crane collapse and suspension of work by governing authorities on mixed-use highrises.
    2. Crane Collapse. Representation of construction manager on tender of defense and indemnity to owner's and concrete contractor's insurers and prosecution of extended duration and additional services claim.