Legal Elite 2024: Construction Law Q&A Juanita F. Ferguson

Legal Elite 2024 Q&A is sponsored content.

Title: Shareholder

Other legal specialties: Commercial and real estate litigation

Education: Bachelor’s degree in business administration, University of Michigan; law degree, George Washington University

Family: A large extended family throughout the District of Columbia and the Tidewater area

Career mentors: Too many to name. They all provided me with opportunities to get out of my comfort zone and encouraged me to simultaneously take what I do seriously and remain humble.

Your dream client: One who takes my advice and trusts that I am working in [his or her] best [interest].

Bingeworthy TV show: “Yellowstone” or “The Wire”

Did Virginia banning pay-if-paid clauses impact your practice? Yes. There was definitely an increased need for amending contracts and educating clients about contract negotiations.

What has your work taught you about relationships? The importance of trusting others, being able to work collaboratively, understanding that there is more than one way to accomplish a goal, acceptance and being able to give and receive support.

Will the new presidential administration impact construction law?  Absolutely, depending on the regulations that will undoubtedly be enacted or removed, policies will be implemented that will affect the agreements [between] contractors and owners …  Those agreements will have a direct [impact] on who can be hired to work on projects as well as benefits that must be offered to construction workers. Those issues will increase the need for counsel to ensure that parties appreciate what may be a very different landscape under which construction occurs in the United States.

Read all of the 2024 Virginia Legal Elite here.

Legal Elite 2024 Q&A is sponsored content.