Annual Case Review of Legal Decisions Affecting Architects & Engineers

 

DATE: Wednesday, February 25, 2026

TIME: 5:30PM – 8:15PM

LOCATION: Historic Christ Church
Parish Hall
121 E. Main St.
Stevensville, MD 21666

2 LU/HSW (pending AIA approval)

Seminar Description –

This seminar will survey over twenty legal cases involving, and affecting, architects and engineers from across the country, focusing on identifying “lessons learned” from those cases to discuss effective professional practices and project management strategies to promote the health, safety, and welfare of occupants of the built environment.

Learning Objectives –

1. Identify How Legal ‘Duty’ Principles Protect the Health, Safety, and Welfare of Occupants of the Built Environment.
2. Describe How Legal Allocations of Responsibility Can Promote the Health, Safety, and Welfare of Occupants of the Built Environment
3. Identify and Understand Ways Improper Contract Administration Can Endanger Occupants of the Built Environment.
4. Review Specific Case Studies Involving (and Mitigating) Dangers Imposed on Occupants of the Built Environment.

HSW topics will dominate the course content. The more informed architects are about laws affecting the practice of architecture, and the expectations of architects established by courts, the better equipped attendees will be to incorporate “lessons learned” by others into their daily practice to protect the safety and welfare of their clients and the public.

Speakers –

Paul Knupp III, ESQ.
Paul Knupp is an Allied Director of the AIA Chesapeake Bay Board of Directors and an attorney with Lee/Shoemaker, a law firm devoted exclusively to the representation of design professionals, with offices in D.C. and Charlottesville. Based on his years of success defending design professionals in claim settings, Paul understands first-hand how Project records and technical details play to judges, juries, arbitrators, and mediators, and brings these ‘lessons learned’ from the legal trenches to bear when advising clients on risk mitigation, contract negotiations, and the many other facets of design firm operations and governance.

Jonathan Shoemaker, Managing Partner

Jonathan Shoemaker believes that the best solution to most problems is often the simplest: what does the contract say? Jonathan begins every new engagement seeking to understand how the parties on a construction project elected to allocate risk and responsibility before the project, and then works with his client to develop a plan for bringing the issue to resolution as expeditiously as possible consistent with the client’s goals.

Jonathan has tried cases before judges, juries, and arbitrators, and relishes the opportunity to advocate for his clients in court and in arbitration. Jonathan enjoys getting into the weeds of a dispute, deconstructing the issues presented throughout the discovery process, and then presenting the dispute clearly and concisely for the fact finder.