Leading Construction Lawyer Identifies Ten “Industry Transformational Trends”

Patrick J. O’Connor, Esquire, the outgoing editor of Under Construction, the newsletter of the ABA Forum on the Construction Industry, wrote an interesting article in the August 2007 issue of Under Construction. In Mr. O’Connor’s view, the next ten years will be the most exciting time to practice construction law in a generation, because the industry will be undergoing transformational change.

Mr. O’Connor sets out ten trends that he believes are likely to transform the industry:

1. Sustainability
2. Integrated Project Delivery
3. Building Information Modeling
4. Modularization
5. Globalization
6. Work Force Constraints
7. Organic Dispute Resolution
8. Lean Construction Techniques
9. Alliance Arrangements
10. Rational Risk Allocation

To obtain Mr. O’Connor’s article, contact the American Bar Association Forum on the Construction Industry, 321 N. Clark Street, Chicago, IL 60610, Attn: Editor, Patrick J. O’Connor, Jr. (This entry published by Karen Carey, a member of Womble Carlyle's real estate development and construction practice group.)