Marion T. Hack

• Achieved a complete dismissal of a federal False Claims Act qui tam complaint regarding alleged violations of Small Business Administration requirements by a contractor.
• Represented two of the world’s largest global construction design/consulting firms to defeat a $100 million breach of contract claim. Achieved a unanimous award of nearly $5 million for the clients from an unpaid contract dispute involving a joint venture construction company in a jury trial lasting three months.
• Represented a major general contractor and sureties in a jury trial regarding a breach of contract claim for the construction of 40 school projects.
• Achieved a complete defense verdict in a four-week jury trial for a city on a differing site condition claim regarding a sewer lift station project, including award of all fees and costs incurred in the litigation.
• Represented the City of Victorville in a jury trial on an affirmative claim for $52 million for breach of contract and torts including breach of fiduciary duty against an engineer.
• Defended trial breach of contract claims regarding pricing of contracts schools and complex issues regarding job order contracting against a school district for a general contractor client.
• Defended a subcontractor’s claims for nonpayment and prompt payment penalties for a school auditorium project.
• Successfully defended approximately $2 million in claims of non-payment to a subcontractor and a $24 million qui tam False Claims Act action which included an award of attorney’s fees for our general contractor client.
• Obtained a complete victory for a subcontractor in an arbitration over a failure of payment claim on a roadway project, including winning an award three times the level of damages, and all attorney fees and costs.
• Represented a general contractor in an arbitration, and was awarded $1.15 million on performance bond claim for a failed structural steel contractor on federal project.
• Represented a federal general contractor in an arbitration regarding disputes in pricing for runway work at an Air Force base.
• Represented the production company of the Spike TV show “Catch a Contractor” and achieved a complete dismissal of a $3 million personal injury action arising out of a construction related television series, including an award of all costs and fees under the anti-SLAPP statute.
• Represented a JV general contractor on the binding neutral evaluation of two large claims for significant extras on airport expansion projects. Both claims determinations were and lead to a cost effective resolution between the parties without protracted litigation.

• Super Lawyers®: California (2012-2022)
• Super Lawyers®: “Rising Star,” California (2004-2007)
• Chambers USA: Construction Law, California (2013-2021)
• Thomson Reuters Stand-out Lawyer (2018-2021) – independently rated lawyers
• Best Lawyers in America®: Construction Law (2018-2022), Litigation – Construction (2018-2022)
• Recommended for construction in The Legal 500 United States (2016, 2020)
• Rated AV Preeminent by Martindale-Hubbell®
• Finalist – 2020 Leaders in the Law – Los Angeles Business Journal

For decades, Troutman Pepper’s multifaceted construction team has been quickly and effectively handling large, complex problems in a wide range of transactional, project management, and litigation matters. Our attorneys counsel clients on some of the largest, most sophisticated construction projects in the world, and we are not aware of any firm that tries (and wins) more complex disputes than we do, in federal and state courts nationwide and arbitration forums domestic and international.

Our construction experience begins with a strong and deep bench of dedicated professionals. We bring a practical perspective from our backgrounds in architecture, engineering, construction, real estate development, finance, accounting, and insurance. We then match professional expertise with client needs on bearing upon virtually every possible project perspective – including owners and developers, EPC and design/build contractors, general contractors, construction managers, government entities, public utilities, major subcontractors and suppliers, and design and engineering firms, as well as sureties and guarantors. Our clients and their busy construction staff waste no time explaining to us the submittal approval cycle, how to read a geotech report, the estimating process, CPM scheduling, cost reporting systems and other basics. Construction matters are not a sideline for our attorneys – construction is our life’s work, just like it is for our clients. This deep and wide range of experience allows us to better understand and more effectively serve as primary outside counsel for the most sophisticated clients, and to efficiently handle nearly every possible client request.

Troutman Pepper’s construction attorneys handle the full life cycle of a project, from project planning, risk assessments, project delivery advice, drafting bid and proposal requests, bid and proposal review and assessment, drafting and negotiation of contract terms, and analysis of project risks to counseling on project delivery systems, project controls, project management best practices, and early resolution of project disputes. Our attorneys also advise on insurance, bonding, and risk-management issues unique to the construction industry.

We are well-known for our construction litigation experience. In the last five years alone, we have handled at least a dozen cases with more than $50 million in dispute. And we don’t just handle litigation – we try cases and win them. We have prevailed in complex construction cases before courts, juries, administrative bodies, and arbitration panels in multiple states and throughout the world. Our litigation experience also enhances our skill in mitigating litigation by proactively helping clients manage and avoid claims at the outset. We make it our priority to reduce the risk of extended litigation that can result in the loss of time, capital, and resources needed to complete a project. We are proud of our track record of resolving disputes — large and small — well before our clients were faced with the costs associated with litigation. If disputes cannot be resolved informally, however, our adversaries know that we have been there before.

Troutman Pepper is a national law firm with more than 1,200 attorneys strategically located in 23 U.S. cities. The firm’s litigation, transactional, and regulatory practices advise a diverse client base, from start-ups to multinational enterprises.

The firm provides sophisticated legal solutions to clients’ most pressing business challenges, with depth across industry sectors, including construction, energy, financial services, health sciences, insurance, private equity, and real estate, among others.