We provided risk analysis and counsel to a construction consulting firm considering a professional services agreement with a public entity for project oversight services. The project involved oversight of a multi-phase public facility construction program. Our analysis focused on the significant insurability and contractual risks presented by the heavily owner-sided agreement. While the agreement had many provisions that could negatively affect our client in a dispute, we assessed that the intent was probably aggressive risk mitigation by the public entity’s inexperienced counsel, not an indication that the public entity was too risky to consider entertaining as a potential client. We advised the consulting firm to weigh the project’s attractiveness, the client relationship, the fee, its current project pipeline, its history with the public entity, and its overall risk tolerance in making its business decision about whether to pursue the project, and to begin a dialogue with the client about potential revisions to the agreement to enhance insurability and mitigate risk.
