Recent Articles
Be Mindful Accepting Payment When Amounts Owed Are In Dispute
After completing work on a project, or even during a project, it is not uncommon for some portion of the contract balance and/or a claim ...
California Precludes Surety from Asserting Pay-When-Paid Provision as Defense to Payment Bond Claim
In a recent case in California, the Court of Appeals held that a surety who had issued a public works payment bond cannot rely on ...
Nick focuses his practice on working with and representing general contractors, subcontractors, developers, design professionals, and suppliers in all legal aspects of the construction industry.
Nick has experience handling a variety of complex construction disputes, including construction defects, delays, terminations, lien and bond claims, contract drafting and review, and workplace injuries.
Nick has also provided pro bono legal services to the under served as part of the King County Bar Association Neighborhood Legal Clinic.
Personal Awards
Education
- B.A., Law, Societies and Justice; Sociology, University of Washington, 2002
- J.D., cum laude, Seattle University, 2013
Professional Associations
- Member, Washington State Bar Association
- Member, Utah State Bar Association
- Member, Tulalip Tribal Court Bar
- King County Bar Association Neighborhood Legal Clinic – Pro Bono Attorney (2015-2018)
Publications & Speeches
- Alliance NW – Understanding Construction Contract Language – 2022
- South Sound Construction Financial Management Association – Construction Contract Language and Law – 2023
- Pacific NW Precast Concrete Association Annual Conference – Keynote Speaker on Contract Provisions and Negotiations – 2024
- NECA Superintendent Course – Legal Issues – 2022, 2023, 2024
Representative Work
- Counsel on behalf of heavy civil contractor/aggregate material supplier in two-year litigation involving break-up of partnership operating sand and gravel pits and rock quarries in Puget Sound area with combined claims asserted in the litigation exceeding $46,000,000.
- Counsel on behalf of a national general contractor in a 7-week jury trial in King County Superior Court. Received a verdict in favor of client, including successfully defending against nearly all defect claims asserted against client.
- Counsel for a general contractor on a private project resulting in a favorable arbitration award in clients favor, including recovering contract claim and defeating owner’s alleged defect claims.
- Counsel in litigation and arbitration proceedings on behalf of subcontractor client resulting in a multi-million dollar recovery against general contractor on largest construction project ever in the state of Washington (SR 99 Tunnel Project).
- Counsel in litigation on behalf of a tunneling subcontractor with claims against both the general contractor and pipe supplier resulting in an 8-figure recovery in the client’s favor.
- Counsel on behalf of subcontractor against general contractor on a Sound Transit project resulting in a multi-million dollar arbitration award.
- Counsel for a municipality in a lawsuit against a general contractor and design professionals related to the new construction of a city building which resulted in an 8-figure recovery in the client’s favor.
- Represented contractor on a project in San Juan County involving claims with both the public owner and a subcontractor/supplier, resulting in a favorable settlement with the owner and favorable arbitration decision against the subcontractor.
- Worked on numerous bid protests on public projects in Washington.
- Represented clients with disputes involving Washington State Department of Labor & Industries.
- Extensive experience representing general contractors, subcontractors and owners on both public and private projects, involving a variety of contract disputes, delay and impact claims, and construction defect claims.
- Transactional Matters: Drafted and negotiated numerous general contracts, subcontracts, supplier agreements, and professional services / designer agreements for both public and private projects.