Top best Construction & Development Lawyers in Atlanta | 71 available

My firm provides a unique combination of high-level skill and experience from representing hundreds of clients on complex and simple legal matters.  Reasonable, affordable fee structures are made possible by keeping my cost of doing business at an efficient level through technologies that conserve resources.  Clients and peers  consistently find my knowledge and execution combine to provide superior legal representation.  Construction law matters, other business matters, and arbitrator/mediator appointments are all competently and professionally handled in ways that win the admiration and respect of those I work for and those who refer my services.

Michael Lee Chapman has over thirty-five years of experience in litigation, arbitration and mediation.. A founding Director and Past Chair of the Construction Law Committee of the Atlanta Bar Association, Mike has handled legal cases involving all phases of the construction industry including airports, bridges, reinforced concrete, structural steel, residential, multi-family, high-rise construction, parking structures, swimming pools, roofing, energy co-generation facilities, excavation, glass, brick, stone work, EIFS, stucco, paving, foundations, water drainage, earth walls, retaining walls, scheduling and delays, erosion and sedimentation control, electrical, mechanical, mold, OSHA, and building code violations. Mike has negotiated complex construction contracts for an international baggage handling contractor for airport projects across the United States.. In addition, he has handled plaintiff claims for casualty losses on fire and commercial general liability insurance policies, insurance coverage disputes, business litigation, employment covenants, non-complete agreements, conflicts between partners in dissolving businesses and website development disputes. He has negotiated home buy-back agreements on two occasions for families who purchased seriously defective homes.. Mike has has provided legal counsel for a variety of real property conflicts, including commercial ground leases, title disputes and settlement of estates. He has litigated easements, zoning and building codes, housing code violations, landlord-tenant disputes, condemnation and inverse condemnation, zoning and related issues.. Mike serves as outside counsel to a major apartment developer with properties in Georgia, Florida and Texas.. He has presented seminars on construction claims, mechanics’ liens and surety bonds for the Cambridge Institute. He has extensive experience with mechanics’ lien disputes and has represented sureties, principals and obligees in a wide variety of claims on performance and payment bonds. He has served as counsel for the plaintiff on suits on guaranty agreements as well as defending parties who have been sued on general agreements of indemnity issued to surety companies. He has represented sureties in liquidation and as well as subrogation proceedings for performing sureties.. Mike has served both as an advocate and an arbitrator on numerous disputes before the American Arbitration Association and has tried many judge and jury trials to a verdict in both state and federal courts. He has resolved hundreds of cases through the use of mediation, including pre-suit mediation.. Mike has been rated AV Preeminent® by Martindale-Hubbell® Peer Review Ratings™ for over 20 years.. An Eagle Scout, Mike has served for many years as a commissioner for the Boy Scouts of America.. Mike obtained his law degree from the University of Virginia. While in law school he was a member of the National Moot Court team. He obtained his undergraduate degree from the University of Kentucky where he graduated With High Distinction in the University Honors Program and was inducted into the Phi Beta Kappa academic honor society.

Ken Franklin has over 10 years of experience guiding clients through complex litigation and business disputes. Mr. Franklin's experience runs the gamut from securities litigation, to trademark defense, to construction claims, to media law, financial services, and insurance defense. Atlanta Magazinehas named Mr. Franklin a Georgia Super Lawyer Rising Star from 2010 through 2019.. Highlights of Mr. Franklin's recent experience include: enjoining the sale of expired consumables by a third party on behalf of the manufacturer; obtaining the dismissal of a dealership agreement arbitration on behalf of a parts manufacturer; representing a public REIT and the current board of directors in shareholder class action litigation filed in both state and federal court related to an $11.2 billion acquisition merger; representing a publicly traded healthcare REIT and its former directors in shareholder class action litigation filed in state and federal court related to a $1.9 billion sales merger; representing an international manufacturer pursuing construction defect and product liability claims related to the wholesale failure of the roof on a manufacturing facility; representing television show producer on defamation claim; and favorable settlements or dismissals in a number of shareholder class action and derivative lawsuits asserting claims for securities law violations and fiduciary duty breaches.. Mr. Franklin is very active in the Atlanta pro bono community. In addition to volunteering his time to handle cases for victims of domestic violence, Mr. Franklin is a member of the Atlanta Volunteer Lawyers Foundation's Junior Board. Mr. Franklin received the Domestic Violence Project Volunteer of the Year Award from the Atlanta Volunteer Lawyers Foundation in 2014 and the prestigious Duane Morris Pro Bono Award in 2015.. Mr. Franklin is a cum laude graduate of the University of Georgia School of Law, where he was Executive Editor of the Journal of Intellectual Property Law, and a cum laude graduate of Davidson College, where he was a member of the varsity football team.. Areas of Practice include securities litigation, First Amendment and media law, commercial litigation, construction, creditors' rights and advisory services, and bank and financial institution representation.

I have been a construction lawyer for 24 years.  Before becoming a lawyer, I was an estimator and project manager in commercial construction.

Gregg Jacobson is an associate in Chamberlain's Construction Group and Commercial Litigation Group in Atlanta.. Gregg’s construction practice involves both small subcontractors and multi-billion dollar general contractors, and focuses on issues relating to contract interpretation, claims for delay, extra work, change orders, liens, breach of contract, surety bond claims, and other common construction problems.. Gregg’s commercial litigation practice specializes in commercial disputes, representing financial institutions, multinational corporations, and small-to-medium sized businesses on breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty, fraud, defamation, and drafting contracts for sale and redemption.

Gabrielle E. Espy focuses her practice on representing corporations and individual clients across a wide variety of matters, including business, construction, real estate, and contract disputes.. Gabrielle has in-depth knowledge and experience handling matters involving commercial and residential construction, mechanics’ and materialmen’s liens, property rights, property boundary disputes, easements, buyer-seller disputes, landlord/tenant disputes, bank and tax foreclosures, title clearing, condominium and homeowners’ associations, creditor-rights and collections, and bankruptcies.. Gabrielle approaches litigation with an abundance of care, recognizing that lawsuits can present a great deal of stress for those involved. With experience counseling prominent Fortune 500 companies to small business owners on an array of matters, she knows the importance of prioritizing transparency and keeping clients well informed throughout all steps of the case. Gabrielle is committed to understanding her clients’ objectives and devises strategies unique to each client to achieve those objectives in an efficient manner.. Gabrielle was raised in Decatur, Georgia. She graduated from Washington & Lee University in 2013 with a dual Bachelor of Arts degree in History and Music. While at Washington & Lee, she served as the President of Generals Interested in Legal Studies, Chair of the Alpha Delta Pi Scholarship Committee, as well as a member of the university orchestra and blue grass ensemble. Gabrielle earned her Juris Doctor degree from the University of Georgia School of Law in 2016. While at UGA Law, Ms. Espy served on the Editorial Board of the Journal of Intellectual Property Law, as President of the Labor and Employment Law Association, Vice President of the Georgia Society for International and Comparative Law, and as an organizer of UGA’s Take Back the Night, a fundraiser for The Cottage and Project Safe.

For those times when I'm not in court or otherwise lawyering, I enjoy sailing.  The above shot is onboard a beautiful 40' Beneteau in the Gulf of Mexico.

After over 30 years of experience representing clients in construction and complex business litigation matters, I am excited about offering my services as a mediator.  While I will continue representing clients in litigation and counseling them regarding construction and business matters, I am devoting a significant portion of my practice to helping parties resolve their civil disputes in mediation.. I am registered with the Georgia Office of Dispute Resolution.  I have experience mediating cases involving construction, contracts, employment, and real estate matters.  I also have experise helping parties with domestic relations disputes.