Tom has engaged in mediation, arbitration, and litigation of construction disputes in Virginia, Maryland and the District of Columbia for more than 20 years.  He has extensive experience representing architects, engineers, land surveyors, contractors, and surety bond producers.  He has often litigated disputes involving construction change orders, project delays, construction defects, and design defects. 

Tom also provides general business advice in corporate, risk management, employment and transactional matters, including owner-architect and architect-subconsultant agreements, and business contracts.  He has a background in general commercial litigation, business tort litigation, lender liability, officer and director liability, real estate title, and foreclosures.

He has been involved in litigation that has been the subject of state and federal court decisions, including the following:

Heritage Harbour v. John J. Reynolds, 143 Md. App. 698, 795 A.2d 806 (Md. Ct. Spec. App. 2002) (Maryland design professional certificate of merit statute, economic loss doctrine, standing to claim contribution and indemnity)

Loverde v. Bldg. Mgmt., 71 Va. Cir. 204 (Fairfax Cir. 2006) (engineer liability, roof collapse, waiver of subrogation, economic loss doctrine, decision on contribution/indemnification)

Cent. Park Drive, LLC v. Rinker Design Assocs., No. CL-2008-4207, 2008 Va. Cir. LEXIS 109, 2008 WL 4376203 (Fairfax Cir., Aug. 19, 2008) (pavement failure dispute, decision on demurrer)

Bromptons at Cherrydale v. Meyer Consulting Eng'rs Corp., No. 06-1418, 2008 Va. Cir. LEXIS 3387 (Arlington Cir., Mar. 19, 2008) (prior version of Virginia engineering limitation of liability statute)

Feeley v. Total Realty Mgmt., 660 F. Supp. 2d 700 (E.D. Va. 2009) (lender liability, fraud, Interstate Land Sales Full Disclosure Act, decision on dismissal)

Dewberry & Davis, Inc. v. C3NS, Inc., 81 Va. Cir. 122 (Fairfax Cir. 2010) (Virginia engineers’ limitation of liability statute)

Access for the Disabled, Inc. v. Penn Mar Assocs., LLC, 453 Fed. Appx. 331 (4th Cir. Md. 2011) (Americans with Disabilities Act, dismissal based on lack of standing affirmed)

Baltimore County v. AECOM Services, 200 Md. App. 380 (Md. Ct. Spec. App. 2011) (architect liability, construction cost, on brief)

Rounds v. Md. Nat'l Capital Park & Planning Comm'n, 214 Md. App. 90 (Md. Ct. Spec. App. 2013) (surveyor liability, slander of title, on brief)

Heavenly Days Crematorium, LLC v. Harris, Smariga & Assocs., 433 Md. 558 (2013) (Maryland design professionals’ certificate of merit statute, engineer liability, on brief)

KBE Bldg. Corp. v. DIW Grp., Inc., No.: C-13-1084, 2014 Md. Cir. Ct. LEXIS 75, 2015 WL 5944695 (Charles County  Circuit Court, July 10, 2014); affirmed KBE Bldg. Corp. v. DIW Grp., Inc., No. 1060, 2015 Md. App. LEXIS 260 (Md. App., Aug. 17, 2015) (summary judgment in favor of engineer based on limitations and absence of contribution or indemnity)

William H. Gordon Assocs. v. Heritage Fellowship, 291 Va. 122, 784 S.E.2d 265 (2016) (architect liability involving product specification, on brief)

Daniel W. Burt v. Delmarva Sur. Assocs. Inc., No. 3417, Sept. Term, 2018, 2020 Md. App. LEXIS 410, 2020 WL 2091748 (Md. App., Apr. 30, 2020) (appeal from summary judgment in favor of surety bond broker, on brief)

In re Merritt Props., No. CL20000-1711, 2022 Va. Cir. LEXIS 505 (Loudoun Cir. Ct., May 4, 2022) (decision sustaining engineer’s demurrer to contribution and indemnity claims based on economic loss doctrine)