Education

Boston University School of Law, J.D.

Bryn Mawr College, A.B., cum laude

Bar Admissions

Massachusetts
New York

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Deborah Griffin

Senior Counsel
Boston
t: 617-305-2044

Deborah S. Griffin is senior counsel in the Litigation Group and concentrates her practice in the area of construction, commercial litigation and bankruptcy. She regularly advises contractors, owners and sureties on construction contract, administration and claim matters and handles construction disputes from start to finish.

Ms. Griffin's experience includes the representation of contractors, construction managers, owners, sureties, banks and bank regulators in loan and contract default situations, both before and during litigation or bankruptcy proceedings. She has helped draft a contract addendum for the use of building information modeling (BIM) on construction projects which has been published as ConsensusDOCS form 301.

Her practice includes: structuring project delivery methods and reviewing, structuring and negotiating construction, design and construction management contracts; advising clients on contract interpretation and contract and project administration for commercial, institutional, and public building projects and public works projects; claim avoidance counseling; public procurement laws and bid protests; construction industry labor and employment issues; OSHA and building code matters; change order management; project close-out management; assessment, preparation and defense of claims; litigation and arbitration of construction related disputes; contract default management and providing general business advice to construction industry clients.

Professional Honors & Awards

  • Boston University Law Review
  • Massachusetts Super Lawyers magazine
  • OSHA 10-Hour Safety Program Certified
  • American Bar Association's Cornerstone Award, 2009
  • Who's Who Legal

Memberships

  • Associated General Contractors of America
  • American College of Construction Lawyers, Fellow, 1990-94; 2006-present
  • National Association of Women in Construction
  • Boston Bar Association, Bankruptcy Law Committee
  • National Construction Panel of Arbitrators for the American Arbitration Association
  • American Bar Association Forum on the Construction Industry, Chair 1990-91; Governing Committee 1986-91
  • American Bar Association Fidelity & Surety Law Committee, Vice Chair 15 years
  • United States Arbitration and Mediation Trained Mediator

Court Admissions

  • U.S. District Court for Massachusetts
  • U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York
  • U.S. Appeals Court, First Circuit
  • All State Courts in Massachusetts
  • All State Courts in New York
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit

Speaking Engagements

  • "BIM Contract Negotiation and Risk Allocation," Construction SuperConference, The Associated General Contractors of America, December 14, 2011
  • "Performance Bonds," ABA Forum on the Construction Industry, September 22, 2011
  • "Meeting at the Crossroads: What Business Lawyers Need to Know About the Intersection of Finance, Real Estate and Bankruptcy Law," ABA Business Law Section Spring Meeting, Boston, MA, April 14, 2011
  • "Intersections of Bankruptcy and Construction: Not Your Average Overview," American College of Construction Lawyers Annual Meeting, February 2010
  • "Which Bond Form is Right for Me?," American Bar Association Continuing Legal Education Teleconference, November 11, 2009
  • "Fundamentals of Construction Law: Learn the Basics from the Pros," American Bar Association Forum on the Construction Industry, Boston, MA, November 5, 2009
  • Speaker, "Getting Paid in Construction - Strategies and Tactics," Associated General Contractors of Massachusetts, October 2, 2008
  • Speaker, "Criteria for Choosing Between Consensus Docs and AIA Bond Forms," American Bar Association, September 2008
  • "Builders, Construction Contractors and Developers in Bankruptcy: Keeping the Work Going and the Payments Flowing," ABA Tips Teleconference, February 20, 2008
  • Speaker, Program on ConsensusDOCS and A201, Associated General Contractors of Massachusetts, February 2008
  • Speaker, "Comparison of ConsensusDOCS and AIA Bond Forms," American College of Construction Lawyers, February 2008
  • Panelist, "Builders, Contractors and Developers in Bankruptcy: Keeping the Work Going and the Payments Flowing," Sponsored by Fidelity and Surety Law Committee of Tort and Insurance Practice Section of the American Bar Association, February 2008
  • "Enforcement of the Collateral Security Provisions in the General Indemnity Agreement: Tactics and Procedures," ABA, San Francisco, January 2007
  • "Managing the Contract Bond Default," ABA, Baltimore and San Antonio, 2005
  • "Massachusetts Building Code," Lorman Seminar, Fall 2005
  • "Twenty-Five Years Under the Bankruptcy Code: Sureties’ Lessons in Coping Survival and Success," ABA, New York, January 2003
  • "Massachusetts Mechanics Lien and Bond Law," Lorman Seminar, Spring 1999-2002
  • Program Co-Chair, Surety Claim Workshop, ABA, Hilton Head, May 1999
  • "Managing and Litigating the Complex Surety Case Program: Organizing and Controlling the Massive Document/Deposition Case," ABA, San Diego and Philadelphia, 1998 and 2000
  • Bond Default Program: "Completion by the Owner," ABA, New York, Chicago, Atlanta and Los Angeles, 1995-97
  • Termination Program: "Post-Termination Bankruptcy Considerations for the Defaulted Contractor," ABA, New York, October 1996
  • "Dispute Resolution Alternatives in Construction," National Association of Women in Construction, June 1993
  • Co-Chair for Program on Construction Financing, ABA, New York, January 1993
  • "Subdivision Bonds," New England Bond Claims Association, October 1992
  • "Construction Surety’s Exposure to Bankruptcy Preference Liability," New England Bond Claims Association, June 1991
  • "Documenting and Presenting Construction Claims," National Association of Women in Construction, September 1990
  • Chair for Program on Problems Relating to Bankruptcy Problems in the Construction Field, ABA, New York, January 1989
  • Mock Trial Demonstration, "Teaching Massachusetts State Court Judges Rules of Damages in Construction Litigation," Flaschner Institute, 1988-89
  • "Bankruptcy Code and the Construction Industry," ABA, New York, January 1983

Published Articles & Books