Lloyd N. “Sonny” Shields | Irwin Fritchie Urquhart Moore & Daniels, LLC

Sonny Shields has more than 43 years of experience in construction industry litigation and contracts; construction law; surety law (primarily construction contract bonds); insurance defense (including CGL, first party property, and architects’ and engineers’ errors, and omissions coverage); products liability; zoning and planning law practice, including administrative hearings; patent, trademark, and copyright litigation; and general litigation, including appeals.

For more than 30 years Sonny was an adjunct professor at Loyola Law School on the subject of the Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure and has taught for nearly 30 years at Tulane Law School on the subject of Historic Preservation Law. Sonny has delivered more than 200 papers and presents on numerous aspects of construction and surety law, and lectures on those subjects as well as on negotiation and mediation skills and practices.

Elizabeth L. Gordon | Irwin Fritchie Urquhart Moore & Daniels, LLC

Betsy Gordon concentrates her practice in the areas of construction/surety law and commercial litigation. She has experience representing owners, contractors, subcontractors, and design professionals in all aspects of construction from contract negotiation and drafting, claim drafting and counseling during construction, and claims resolution in state and federal courts and before arbitration panels. Betsy has handled these issues involving private owners and state and federal agencies. She has handled state and public lien law claims and federal Miller Act claims. Other practice areas include commercial litigation, products liability, and mass tort litigation.

Betsy regularly lectures on construction law topics, including Louisiana lien law, general Louisiana and Federal construction law, construction defect insurance law and surety law. Betsy is a member of the Board of the Surety Claims Institute.

Session I – Price Escalation Clauses in Construction Contracts: Mitigating risks for owners, contractors, and subcontractors | 2:00pm – 3:00pm

• The current state of price escalation
• Types of construction contracts and price liability
  • Cost-plus
  • Fixed price
  • Guaranteed maximum
• Force majeure
  • Limitations
    • Type of relief
• Change orders
• Price escalation clauses

Break | 3:00pm – 3:10pm

Session II – Structuring Construction Contracts: Termination for convenience vs. termination for cause | 3:10pm – 4:10pm

• Termination for convenience
  • Good faith
  • Notice
  • Damages
  • Right to cure or fix
• Best practices for termination for convenience vs. termination for cause