Total Credits: 6 CLE, 1 Ethics, 5 Construction Defect Law Specialization
Co-Sponsored by The State Bar of Arizona Construction Law Section
Arizona courts generally show respect for “the sanctity of contract” by enforcing negotiated contract terms. However, because of the unusual risks inherent in the construction process and the chaotic nature of construction projects, the Arizona judiciary and the legislature have limited the enforcement of certain construction contract provisions in ways that run contrary to the sanctity of contract.
This year’s State Bar Construction Law Section’s All-Day Program will focus on numerous legislative and judicial exceptions to the rote enforcement of written construction contracts. The faculty of experienced construction lawyers will discuss how—and more importantly why—the realities of construction contracting sometimes outweigh the parties’ freedom to contract. The seminar will include one hour of CLE ethics credit.
The program will cover a wide range of topics, including:
Program Co-Chairs:
Michael J. Holden, Holden Willits PLC
Barry A. Willits, Holden Willits PLC
*Cancellations must be made prior to 12:00pm on April 10, 2023
MICHAEL J. HOLDEN is the founding member of the Phoenix law firm of Holden Willits PLC. A 1980 graduate of Duke Law School, he has concentrated his practice for over 35 years in the areas of construction law, representing primarily owners, contractors, subcontractors, materials suppliers and sureties. Mr. Holden is a frequent author and speaker on a wide range of construction issues. He co-wrote “Developments in Change Order Law,” 1999 Wiley Construction Law Update, Aspen Law and Business (1999), “Recent Caselaw Developments in West Region,” 1998 Wiley Construction Law Update, Aspen Law and Business (1998), as well as the Arizona chapter in Fifty State Public Construction Contracting, Wiley Law Publications (1996). He was also a contributing author to the Arizona Construction Law Practice Manual. Mr. Holden helped draft the 1992 and 1998 amendments to the Arizona mechanics’ and materialman’s lien laws. He was also one of the primary authors of Arizona’s revolutionary private sector prompt payment law enacted in 2000 and the 2010 prompt pay amendments. He was the founder and first chair of the Arizona State Bar Construction Law Section, and he serves as legal counsel for the Arizona Builders Alliance. He is also an adjunct professor at Arizona State University School of Law and has taught a course on construction law for the past 12 years. Mr. Holden is listed in Best Lawyers in America and Southwest Super Lawyers. He was elected as a Fellow to the American College of Construction Lawyers in 2011.
Barry A. Willits, is a partner with Holden Willits PLC. His practice focuses on commercial litigation and construction law. He has represented owners, general contractors, subcontractors, materials suppliers, sureties and design professionals. He is a :frequent author and speaker on a wide range of construction issues including the Arizona chapter of the 2000, 2003 and 2010 editions of the ABA Design/Build Handbook; "Economic Damage Claims Against Design Professionals,"Arizona Attorney (February 2003): "Court of Appeals Says Licensing Statute Still Has Teeth," 13 Arizona Builders' Alliance Legal Notes (July/August 2002); "Arizona's Statute of Repose: Does it Really Bar all After Eight Years?" 15 Arizona
Builders 'Alliance (June 2004). From 1994 through 1996, Mr. Willits clerked for the Hon. Sarah Evans Barker, Chief Judge for the U.S. District Court in the Southern District of Indiana. He is a member of the State Bar of Arizona and the American Bar Association (Construction Forum)
and is admitted to practice in the U.S. Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals and the U.S. District Courts for Arizona and Southern Indiana. He graduated Order of the Coif from the University of Virginia Law School and earned a B.A. with highest distinction, Phi Beta Kappa, from Indiana University in 1989. Mr. Willits is listed in Best Lawyers in America and Southwest Super Lawyers.
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