Welcome to The Construction ADR Toolbox
Our scope includes all things related to preventing and resolving construction disputes by means other than the court system—arbitration, mediation, dispute review boards, neutral evaluation, negotiation, and all other ways to resolve construction-related disputed issues.
Our vision is to provide interesting, timely, and useful thoughts and information to anyone interested in construction ADR. It may be something that you can use in a hearing or mediation next week, an idea that may apply to a developing dispute, a twist on the “normal” process for mediating or arbitrating that is useful to keep in mind for disputes down the road or just a relevant and thought-provoking idea to add to your ADR knowledge bank. We strive for insight as well as relevance, practical applications as well as concepts.
DISCLAIMER: We do not provide specific legal advice but rather useful information with perhaps a touch of wisdom gained from long experience. The views expressed are solely those of the authors and do not represent the views of any organizations with which we are associated.
About the Authors
Andy Ness and Leslie O’Neal are the founders and authors behind The Construction ADR Toolbox.
Andrew Ness
Leslie O’Neal
We have a lot in common, but we have different viewpoints based on our diverse experiences. Both of us were practicing construction lawyers for at least 40 years, starting at smaller firms and then shifting to much larger firms, where each of us had substantial firm management roles in addition to our busy practices.
After retiring from law practice, we became experienced construction neutrals, and we spend a lot of time thinking about ADR issues.. Most importantly, we spend time thinking and talking about ways to improve the dispute resolution process. Both of us worked our way up through many roles in the ABA Forum on Construction Law and eventually became Chairs of the Forum, Leslie in 1997-1998 and Andy in 2012-13. We are longtime members of the American College of Construction Lawyers and served on the board of the College. We have been active in speaking and writing on a wide range of construction law topics throughout our careers.
But we are also different in complementary ways. Leslie left big firm practice, where she represented public and private owners and general contractors to spend the last 15 years in-house at a major construction firm. Andy stuck with large firms and the outside counsel role until his retirement in December 2018. In addition to domestic disputes, Andy worked on international projects in the Middle East, Europe, Asia, and South America, where he saw how different cultures deal with construction disputes and some ideas that may not yet have reached the U.S. Leslie focused on U.S. disputes of many different types, including multi-party construction defect claims, surety claims and insurance claims in various jurisdictions around the country. While both of us have been involved with a wide range of projects and tried cases in numerous different courts (as well as arbitrations and mediations, of course), our specific experiences reveal many differences. The range of construction disputes and ways to resolve them is broader than any one lawyer can experience, even over a long career, but between us, there is not much we have not seen and done. That variety has carried over into our careers as neutrals as well.
