Legal Aspects of Architecture, Engineering and the Construction Process

The primary focus of this text is to provide a bridge for students between the academic world and the real world. This bridge is built through an understanding of what is law, how law is created, how law affects almost every activity of human conduct, and how legal institutions operate. Intended mainly for architectural and engineering students, but increasingly for those in business schools and law schools, this text features a clear, concise, and jargon-free presentation. It probes beneath the surface of legal rules and uncovers why these rules developed as they did, outlines arguments for and against these rules, and examines how they work in practice. Updated with the most recent developments in the legal aspects of architectural, engineering, and the construction processes, this text is also a valuable reference for practitioners that has been cited in over twenty-five court decisions.

Table of Contents:
1. Sources of Law: Varied and Dynamic 2. The American Judicial System: A Forum for Dispute Resolution 3. Forms of Association: Organizing to Accomplish Objectives 4. The Agency Relationship: A Legal Concept Essential to Contract Making 5. Contracts and Their Formation: Connectors for Construction Participants 6. Remedies for Contract Breach: Emphasis on Flexibility 7. Losses, Conduct, and the Tort System: Principles and Trends 8. Introduction to the Construction Process: Ingredients for Disputes 9. Limits on Ownership: Land Use Controls 10. Professional Registration and Contractor Licensing: Evidence of Competence or Needless Entry Barrier? 11. Contracting for Design Services: Pitfalls and Advice 12. Professional Design Services: The Sensitive Issues 13. Compensation and Other Owner Obligations 14. Professional Liability: Process or Product? 15. Risk Management: A Variety of Techniques 16. Intellectual Property: Ideas, Copyrights, Patents, and Trade Secrets 17. Planning the Project: Compensation and Organization Variations 18. Competitive Bidding: Theory, Realities, and Legal Pitfalls 19. Sources of Construction Contract Rights and Duties: Contract Documents and Legal Rules 20. Contract Interpretation: Chronic Confusion 21. Changes: Complex Construction Centerpiece 22. Payment: Money Flow as Lifeline 23. Expectations and Disappointments: Some Performance Problems 24. Defects: Design, Execution, and Blurred Roles 25. Subsurface Problems: Predictable Uncertainty 26. Time: A Different but Important Dimension 27. Claims: By-Products of Construction Process 28. The Subcontracting Process: An "Achilles Heel" 29. The Design Professional as Judge: A Tradition Under Attack 30. Construction Disputes: Arbitration and Other Methods to Reduce Costs and Save Time 31. Indemnification and Other Forms of Shifting and Sharing Risks: Who Ultimately Pays? 32. Surety Bonds: Backstopping Contractors 33. Terminating a Construction Contract: Sometimes Necessary but Always Costly APPENDIX A - Standard Form of Agreement between Owner and Architect APPENDIX B - Standard Form of Agreement between Owner and Contractor APPENDIX C - General Conditions of the Contract for Construction APPENDIX D - Performance and Payment Bonds APPENDIX E - Standard Form of Agreement Between Contractor and Subcontractor APPENDIX F - Construction Industry Dispute Resolution Procedures APPENDIX G - Standard Form of Agreement Between Owner and Engineer for Professional Services APPENDIX H - Standard Form of Agreement Between Owner and Contractor for Construction Contract APPENDIX I - Standard General Conditions of the Construction Contract

Review :
The value of Legal Aspects to the practicing construction lawyer is as a general single volume textbook that offers astute observations and analyses of construction issues by two respected co-authors. The value of Legal Aspects to the law professor is as a teaching text having practical as well as academic significance. This is a book that the construction law libraries of law firms and universities should include. I appreciate the authors approach to this text, especially how they are targeting the architecture and engineering students, not just the law students. I think the authors do an excellent job presenting the pertinent information that these design professionals will face in their futures. That and the incredible amount of reference material in the text is what led me to choose this book for my course.