Stearns Weaver’s Lundeen and team move construction practice to Bilzin Sumberg
Bilzin Sumberg, one of Miami’s powerhouses of real estate law, has fueled up its engines.
The Brickell-based commercial law firm has hired seven lawyers — from Stearns Weaver — to create a team focused on construction law. They include Joy Spillis Lundeen, Felix Rodriguez, Kelly Ruane Melchiondo, Johnathan Ayers, Michael Larmoyeux Jr., Alexander Leon and Katrina Flores. Lundeen will lead the group.
“We look at the pandemic as the current normal. Our plan is to come out of it stronger than when we went into it,” said Al Dotson Jr., managing partner of Bilzin Sumberg. “Construction is ongoing in South Florida. Clients also require our counsel across the country and world. We do see an increase in infrastructure-related work, especially a need for construction expertise, [with] clients repositioning assets during construction and demand for construction finance.”
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Previously, lawyers from different Bilzin Sumberg divisions worked on construction finance, litigation and contractors pursuing government-related work. Lundeen and her group, Dotson Jr. said, will primarily focus on negotiations for construction contracts and litigation.
Most of the conversations Lundeen has with her clients these days revolve around renegotiating construction time frames, litigation that comes from contract disputes and force majeure clauses, she said. Her clients include the ownership groups of Hard Rock Stadium and the Miami Marlins, Codina Partners, the Comras Company, Newgard Development Group and the Bank of America Community Development Group.
Talks started in February between Dotson Jr. and Lundeen. Although the two knew each other since high school — both attended Miami Palmetto Senior High School — neither seriously considered working together until this year.
“A cultural fit is important to us. We also had clients in common, including Related and the Miami Dolphins, and clients recommend her attorneys. When you’re hearing it from all corners — from the legal community, clients and personal interaction — that led us to make an offer to Joy and her group,” Dotson Jr. said.
Looking ahead, Dotson Jr. said, Lundeen and her team will be working on contracts related to Virgin Trains’ expansion to Orlando.
Bilzin Sumberg was established in 1998. Lawyers are based in Miami and focus primarily on projects related to South Florida, but they also advise clients on their business and legal challenges throughout the United States, Europe, Latin America, Canada, the Middle East and Asia. The firm has divisions focused on real estate, land development, government relations, environmental, corporate law, joint ventures, domestic and international tax and estate planning, business litigation, finance and public-private partnerships.
