Dotted Line: How Construction Is Dealing with Cybersecurity in the Age of AI
October 12, 2026 —
Richard R. Volack - Peckar & Abramson, PCRichard R. Volack, Partner in P&A’s New York office and Chair of the firm’s Cyber Security & Data Privacy practice, was recently quoted in “Dotted Line: How Construction Is Dealing with Cybersecurity in the Age of AI,” an article written by
Construction Dive. The article examines how contractors’ increasing reliance on interconnected technologies and AI can make cyberattacks more sophisticated. It discusses the heightened risks for government contractors and smaller subcontractors, including the potential exposure of sensitive project information, personal data, and financial records. It also explores practical measures contractors can take to mitigate these risks, such as strengthening contractual protections, conducting penetration testing, obtaining appropriate cyber insurance, implementing multifactor authentication, and providing employees with regular cybersecurity training.
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Richard R. Volack, Peckar & Abramson, PCMr. Volack may be contacted at
rvolack@pecklaw.com
Best Lawyers Recognizes 33 White and Williams LLP Lawyers
August 24, 2026 —
White and Williams LLPWhite and Williams LLP is pleased to congratulate our attorneys recognized among the 2027 Best Lawyers in America® rankings.
Best Lawyers® has recognized Michael W. Horner, Chair of the Healthcare Group and Managing Partner of the Cherry Hill, NJ Office, as a 2027 "Lawyer of the Year” in the area of Litigation - Insurance for Cherry Hill. Michael Horner’s has extensive experience litigating, mediating and arbitrating complex catastrophic cases throughout multiple jurisdictions in the Northeast, with litigation and counseling experience that spans several decades in the areas of healthcare, catastrophic loss and employment matters in multiple state and federal jurisdictions.
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White and Williams LLP
In-House Insight at CSC
October 26, 2026 —
Elaine Y. Lee - Peckar & Abramson, P.C.Elaine Y. Lee, Partner in P&A’s Los Angeles office, sat down with Third Thursday to discuss effective collaboration with in-house counsel, strategies for resolving construction disputes, and the factors that can help determine the best path forward. This discussion previews her upcoming
Construction Super Conference panel, “Same But Different: How In-House Legal Teams Vary in Approach, Role, and Decision-Making,” on December 2nd.
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Elaine Y. Lee, Peckar & Abramson, P.C.Ms. Lee may be contacted at
elee@pecklaw.com
A Permitting Base Checklist for Data Centers and Power Plants
June 02, 2026 —
Michael S. McDonough, Stephen J. Humes & Stacey C. Wright - Gravel2Gavel Construction & Real Estate Law BlogThere is a lot of talk these days about “license to operate” for data centers, meaning management of the relationships with stakeholders and broader communities concerning both the benefits and adverse consequences of locating a facility in a particular locale. Here, we are speaking of “license to operate” more literally—namely, the legal and regulatory permitting and approval requirements for a privately owned data center whether by itself or colocated with a power generating plant.
Our Base Checklist includes generally and potentially applicable permitting requirements for development and operation, using California as an example. (Taking legal authority Frank Sinatra out of context, “If you can make it there, you can make it anywhere.”) The actual requirements for a given facility would depend, in part, on local law, including planning and zoning laws and plans, and the environment of the site. Just as examples, additional permitting and mitigation requirements might apply if sensitive receptors are located nearby (e.g., noise mitigation for residential dwellings), if sensitive and protected biological resources (e.g., jurisdictional waters and/or protected species) would be impacted, or if the present or former land uses require additional measures (e.g., hazardous materials remediation, mitigation for conversion of prime farmland, or protection of cultural resources). The scope of permit requirements would ultimately be determined by the applicable regulatory agencies and by the lead and responsible agencies under the applicable state environmental land use regime—in our reference case here, the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).
Reprinted courtesy of
Michael S. McDonough, Pillsbury,
Stephen J. Humes, Pillsbury and
Stacey C. Wright, Pillsbury
Mr. McDonough may be contacted at michael.mcdonough@pillsburylaw.com
Mr. Humes may be contacted at stephen.humes@pillsburylaw.com
Ms. Wright may be contacted at stephen.humes@pillsburylaw.com
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RONI: What You Lose by Not Investing in AI – With Sam Zolfagharian
September 21, 2026 —
Aarni Heiskanen - AEC BusinessSam Zolfagharian returns to the AEC Business Podcast for her second appearance. She is an AI strategist, keynote speaker, and the author of two books, Disrupt It and Future by Design. She spoke at the AI in AEC conference in Helsinki in March, and we picked up the conversation where that keynote left off.
The starting point was a question her clients keep raising. Executives are being asked by their boards about the return on their AI investments, and many of them do not have an answer they trust. This episode is about what to measure instead, and when the dollar figure finally becomes the right number to look at.
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Aarni Heiskanen, AEC BusinessMr. Heiskanen may be contacted at
aec-business@aepartners.fi
Italian Court Convicts 32 in Morandi Bridge Collapse Case
August 25, 2026 —
Bryan Gottlieb - Engineering News-RecordFormer Autostrade per l'Italia CEO Giovanni Castellucci was sentenced to 12 years in prison July 16 after an Italian court handed down the first criminal verdicts stemming from the 2018 Morandi Bridge collapse in Genoa that killed 43 people.
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Bryan Gottlieb, Engineering News-RecordMr. Gottlieb may be contacted at
gottliebb@enr.com
Insured is Third Party Beneficiary of Forced-Place Policy
October 26, 2026 —
Tred R. Eyerly - Insurance Law HawaiiThe court denied the insurer’s motion to dismiss the insured’s fire damage claims under a forced-place policy because the insured was a third-party beneficiary of the policy. Fredericks v. Assurant Specialty, et al., 2026 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 179779 (E.D. Pa. Aug. 12, 2026).
The insureds’ home burned down on the same day their homeowner’s policy expired. The expiration automatically triggered a forced-placed policy issued by American Security Insurance Company (ASIC) to the insureds’ mortgage company, Rocket Mortgage Company, LLC.
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Tred R. Eyerly, Damon Key Leong Kupchak HastertMr. Eyerly may be contacted at
te@hawaiilawyer.com
Don’t Forget to Include Termination Language in Your Contract
November 02, 2026 —
David Adelstein - Florida Construction Legal UpdatesA recent case explains why termination language or a basis to withhold contract sums is important in your contract. Don’t neglect this language or the negotiation that goes into having this language.
In a recent dispute, GSD Contracting, LLC v. All American Builders & Debris Removal, Inc., 2026 WL 3068422 (Fla. 4th CA 2026), a subcontract included language that said that 10% retainage would be paid 90 days after final completion of the project. The subcontract did NOT include termination for cause language; it only included termination for convenience language. Towards the end of the project, mold was discovered warranting mold remediation. The subcontractor refused to perform until the mold was remediated. The general contractor claimed it was remediated but the subcontractor argued the remediation was insufficient because the contractor did not engage an industrial hygienist. After the subcontractor refused to complete its work, the general contractor terminated the subcontractor for cause. The subcontractor then sued the general contractor for its 10% retainage claiming the general contractor breached the subcontract. The trial court, as affirmed by the appellate court, agreed. The appellate court found that the contract required the general contractor to pay the subcontractor’s retainage 90 days after final completion and the project had long been completed. “Significantly, the subcontract does not contain a termination for cause provision or any pertinent provision permitting [the general contractor] to withhold or retain [the subcontractor’s] retainage following a termination…Nothing in the subcontract provides that [the general contractor] may thereafter withhold the retainage based on an alleged default by [the subcontractor].” GSD Contracting, supra, at *2.
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David Adelstein, Kirwin NorrisMr. Adelstein may be contacted at
dma@kirwinnorris.com