Adam J. Richie

Adam is a seasoned Construction attorney with extensive industry experience and a professional engineering background. Adam has significant experience representing companies in construction transactions valued at over a billion dollars. He guides clients through all phases of construction development, with a particular focus on evaluating insurance coverage issues.

Representing a diverse range of clients, he is Board Certified in Construction Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, a distinction that reflects his expertise and dedication to the field. Adam's commitment to excellence and client service is evident in his successful representation of both public and private owners, general contractors, and design professionals in complex lawsuits and disputes. 

Adam brings a unique combination of legal and technical experience to his practice. He earned his J.D. from South Texas College of Law Houston, where he served as Articles and Managing Editor of the Corporate Counsel Review. Before becoming an attorney, Adam earned a B.S. from the University of Houston–Downtown and worked as a Mechanical Engineer and Project Manager at a consulting engineering firm in Houston, Texas. His hands-on experience in the construction industry gives him valuable insight into the challenges his clients face, allowing him to deliver practical, results-oriented legal solutions. Adam excels in high-demand, fast-paced environments, consistently meeting client objectives with efficiency and precision.

He has spoken to numerous construction industry groups throughout his career on various construction law issues and continues to be an active member in his community.

Community & Professional

• American Bar Association (Construction Industry Forum)
• Associated General Contractors of America, San Antonio Chapter (Board of Directors, 2016)
• Construction Leadership Forum
• LEED Accredited Professional (AP)
• Austin Bar Association, Construction Law Section
• State Bar of Texas, Construction Law and Insurance Law Sections Texas Bar Foundation (Fellow)
• Texas Board of Professional Engineers (Inactive)
• USGBC Central Texas - Former Member (Former Vice Chair of Education, Balcones Chapter)
• Certified BIM Instructor for Unit 3: Building Information Modeling; Contract & Negotiation & Risk Allocation

• Representing a private real estate development company in the $1 billion expansion of the Broward County Convention Center and a new Headquarters Hotel (a Four Diamond AAA brand standard hotel, operated by Omni Hotels) consisting of approximately 800 hotel rooms, 580 parking spaces, and related amenities (including ballrooms, conference and meeting rooms, a pool, a spa and fitness center, restaurants, and retail stores located on the premises) to be constructed in Broward County, Florida, and leased to a company pursuant to a ground lease. Adam is currently acting as lead construction and insurance coverage counsel for the developer in connection with the development and negotiation of all upstream and downstream design and construction contracts.
• Serving as Special Counsel relating to design, construction, and procurement advice for one financial participant water authority providing a portion of funding for the construction of the Northeast Water Purification Plant Expansion Project. This design-build, multi-phase project will be completed in 2025 and is being designed to produce 320 million gallons of water a day. The project is currently estimated to cost approximately $1.7 billion.
• Serving as Special Counsel relating to design, construction, and general procurement of the Surface Water Supply Line Project for two public owners. This project involves the installation of approximately 40 miles of large-diameter water pipe (80 inches to 96 inches), including roughly ten miles of tunneling, across the northern corridor of Houston, Texas. The project is currently slated to deliver more than 200 million gallons of water a day to West Houston for the Northeast Water Purification Plant Expansion Project. The project is estimated to cost approximately $850 million.
• Represented a major not-for-profit health care system in drafting a full manuscript master design and construction procurement documents for use on its extensive negotiated work program. The current program is estimated to exceed $500 million.
• Represented an independent Japanese consulting firm in the drafting and negotiating of an Engineering Procurement Construction (EPC) project management contract for the design and construction of a Municipal Solid Waste to Ethanol Conversion Plant with an estimated construction cost of approximately $700 million. 
• Represented a national real estate investment firm in the construction of a 658-bed, 309-unit student housing project on a 4.28-acre site in Coralville, Iowa. Adam acted as lead construction and insurance coverage counsel during the development and negotiation of the design-build agreement.
• Represented one of the largest mechanical contractors in Houston in a six-party international arbitration involving a failed refrigeration system installed in an industrial food processing facility in Missouri City, Texas. A favorable settlement for the client was reached, which was primarily funded by the Canadian manufacturer’s settlement contribution and the full policy limits tendered by the client’s CGL carrier.
• Represented a refrigeration contractor on an international, multi-party design/construction defects case involving an industrial refrigeration system in a large food processing facility. Advised a large governmental entity on all aspects of procurement and contracting in connection with the site evaluation and project management of a $900 million expansion program in Austin, Texas, including analysis of insurance policies of prospective design and construction firms. The project includes 1.5 million square feet of modern, high-performance office buildings connected by underground tunnels and parking facilities.
• Represented a public owner in connection with the procurement of a Construction Manager-at-Risk for a $200 million river improvements project in San Antonio, Texas, including the development and negotiation of the construction contract for the project.
• Represented a heavy civil construction contractor in a multi-million dollar claim against the engineer and public owner for delays associated with unknown buried gas pipelines on a flood improvement project.
• Developed and negotiated architectural, engineering, and construction contracts for a public owner’s $900 million hospital expansion program delivered under the construction manager-at-risk delivery method.
• Performed extensive coverage analysis of an ENR Top 200 Contractor’s insurance policies for a governmental entity on a $400 million desalination project.
• Developed and negotiated project management and design/construction contracts for a public owner’s service center projects to be delivered under Design-Build delivery method.
• Represented an ENR Top 10 engineering/construction firm in a $30 million design defects claim on a port expansion project.

Recognition

• Austin Monthly – Austin’s Top Attorneys (2023)
• Chambers USA – Construction Band 3, Texas (2022 - present)
• Construction Lawyers Society of America – Fellow
• SA Scene Magazine – Best Lawyer for Construction Law (2016)
• Woodward/White, Inc., - Best Lawyers in America, Construction Law (2021-Present); Best Lawyers in America, Litigation (2021-Present)