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John R. McDowall joined the firm in 1995. Mr. McDowall focuses his practice on construction, real estate, commercial disputes and transactions, and business planning. He has taken several trials and arbitrations to verdict. In the area of real estate, he has represented owners and developers on all types of real estate issues and projects, including acquisitions and sales of property, securing financing for developments, entity formation, lease negotiations and disputes, and litigation over real estate investments. He also frequently advises both tenants and owners on lease negotiations. In the area of construction, he has represented owners, developers, contractors and subcontractors in all phases of construction projects, including drafting Requests for Proposal, contract drafting and negotiation, claim prosecution, lien claims, and prosecution and defense of property damage and defective construction claims. He also advises several closely-held companies in many industries regarding company formation, purchases, sales, mergers, leases, contracts, employee issues, severance and noncompete issues, and business planning issues. Representative Projects Technical Systems, Inc. v. Pierce County Mr. McDowall obtained a $1.65 million settlement for Lynnwood-based control systems contractor Technical Systems, Inc. for claims stemming from extra work performed on the Pierce County Jail. Vashon School District v. Modern Building Systems, Inc. Mr. McDowall secured a defense verdict in arbitration for Oregon-based modular building manufacturer Modern Building Systems, Inc. based primarily on defenses under the economic loss rule. Swedish Medical Center/C.B. Richard Ellis Mr. McDowall represents Swedish Medical Center and their property manager, C.B. Richard Ellis, in various construction-related matters. He has assisted them with their Requests for Proposal, contract issuance, and negotiation of prime contracts with general contractors and architects. He also handles construction disputes and litigation matters for Swedish. The Gilbert Development in Seattle Mr. McDowall successfully handled a two-phase arbitration for a Seattle property owner/developer that resulted in the eviction of a hold-out tenant so the developer's 54-unit mixed use development could proceed. The hold-out tenant argued for specific performance of options under a lease, but the arbitrator ruled in the developer's favor. Mr. McDowall then negotiated the construction contract with contractor, and handled project closeout issues, and take-out loan at the end of the project. | 