Joseph A. Battipaglia, P.E.
Partner
Duane Morris LLP
30 South 17th Street
Philadelphia, PA 19103-4196
USA
Phone: +1 215 979 1186
Fax: +1 215 689 0881
Email: JABattipaglia@duanemorris.com

Joseph A. Battipaglia concentrates his practice in the area of construction law and commercial litigation and is a member of Duane Morris' national Construction Law Practice Group. He is an active trial lawyer handling disputes involving design/construction contracts and commercial issues in federal court, state courts and arbitration. Having extensive experience in all aspects of construction matters, he has represented owners, contractors, manufacturers, architects, engineers and sureties. He has drafted and negotiated numerous design, construction, procurement and EPC contracts for companies and public owners. He has coordinated construction and design licensing of several major design/construction companies throughout the United States, and has handled licensing compliance issues. He has handled bid protests for public owners and contractors.

Mr. Battipaglia has been involved in all aspects of construction for more than 30 years. Prior to practicing law, Mr. Battipaglia, also a registered professional engineer, was a consultant on design and construction contract disputes, and testified as an expert witness concerning contract disputes and damages throughout the United States. He has also performed construction management for an international engineering and construction company.

Mr. Battipaglia is a member of the Forum on the Construction Industry of the American Bar Association and a member of the Pennsylvania, Philadelphia and New Jersey bar associations.

Mr. Battipaglia is a 1990 honors graduate of Rutgers School of Law - Camden and a 1981 honors graduate of Drexel University (B.S., civil engineering).

Areas of Practice

• Construction Law and Litigation
• Commercial Litigation

Representative Matters

• Obtained a $13 million jury verdict following a four-week trial for a national developer against a nationally recognized architectural engineering firm in a suit arising from the delayed construction and opening of a major retail center in Atlantic City, N.J.
• Recovered millions of dollars on behalf of a subcontractor for delay and extra costs on two separate bridge and highway projects in New York.
• Successfully represented a contractor in a major arbitration involving a combined cycle power project, located in Ohio, which involved thirteen different parties, multiple claims, seven experts, and claims and cross-claims exceeding $100 million.
• Participated in a litigation on behalf of a major design/build contractor on a power project in Virginia.
• Recovered several million dollars for increased design and construction costs in an arbitration for a national engineering and construction company involving a major facility at the JFK International Airport.
• Successfully defended a national design/engineering company in defense of deficient design claim on a major construction project at Sun refinery.
• Successfully represented a large general contractor in pursuing a claim in state court for changed conditions, labor inefficiency and extra work, totaling in excess of $5 million on a project involving extensive renovation of a building of Rutgers' campus.
• Received a complete defense verdict in a lengthy jury trial on behalf of a school district on claims brought by a prime contractor who was seeking to recover millions in delay costs, inefficiency and extra work.
• Successfully represented a school district in a complex jury trial for millions in claims the school district brought against a general contractor to correct significant construction deficiencies in a new middle school.
• Defended and pursued claims for school districts in several arbitrations and trials against multi-million dollar claims, which were resolved to the clients' satisfaction.
• Recovered several million dollars on behalf of a subcontractor in an arbitration on a $200 million high-rise office and retail complex.
• Recovered all amounts owed under a software contract, plus attorneys fees, from a major airline in a 2-week jury trial for a software company whose global package tracking software was never implemented.
• Resolved to the client's satisfaction a multi-million dollar suit in New Hampshire federal court on behalf of a national software distributor.
• Obtained injunction and awards of major construction contracts for a general contractor on several bid protests where the contractor submitted the 2nd and 3rd highest bids.
• Obtained injunctions against Atlantic City, N.J., for millions in tax increases.
• Obtained injunctions in federal court enjoining ex-employees and their new employers from infringing trade secrets, patents and copyrights.
• Coordinated and obtained design and construction licenses throughout the United States for affiliated international companies in the power generation and power distribution business.

Professional Activities

• Has written and lectured extensively on construction law issues for construction industry groups
• Serves as an arbitrator for the American Arbitration Association and the Court of Common Pleas for Philadelphia County
• American Bar Association
  - Forum on the Construction Industry
• Pennsylvania Bar Association
• Philadelphia Bar Association
• New Jersey State Bar Association

Admissions

• New Jersey
• Pennsylvania
• U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey
• U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
• Supreme Court of Pennsylvania
• U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania
• Supreme Court of New Jersey

Education

• Rutgers School of Law - Camden, J.D., with honors, 1990
• Drexel University, B.S. Civil Engineering, with honors, 1981

Experience

• Eckert Seamans Cherin & Mellott, LLC, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
  - Trial Department, 1992-1999
  
• Hoyle, Morris & Kerr, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
  - Trial Department, 1990-1992
• Senior consultant for two national consultant companies in design and construction, 1985-1990
  - Analysis and evaluation of international construction claims.
  - Expert testimony throughout the nation regarding construction contract disputes, schedule analysis, delay and disruption claims, and calculation of damages.
• Construction management professional for an engineering/construction company, 1978-1985
  - Construction management of power and industrial projects.
• Licensed Professional Engineer
  
  Additional Licensure:
  Licensed Professional Engineer, New Jersey, 1984

Honors and Awards

• Named to Pennsylvania Super Lawyers for Construction Litigation and Construction/Surety Law, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013
• Listed in Who's Who in American Law, 2009
• Listed in Super Lawyers Corporate Counsel Edition, May 2009
• AV® Preeminent™ Peer Review Rated by Martindale-Hubbell

Selected Publications

• "Benefits of Jury Research for Discovery, Mediation, Voir Dire and Trial," American Bar Association, Forum on the Construction Industry, Scottsdale, Arizona, April 2011
• Co-author, Pennsylvania Construction Law: Getting Started, Getting Covered, Getting Paid, PBI Press, 2011
• Radical Proposal for Reformation of Dispute Resolution in the Construction Industry, The Construction SuperConference, San Francisco, California, 2005
• Drafting Contract Provisions To Allocate Responsibilities,
  The Construction SuperConference, 2004
• Pennsylvania Law For Design Professionals,
  Lorman Education Services, 2001
• Pennsylvania Law For Design Professionals,
  Lorman Education Services, 2000
• Allocation of Risks by Contract
  Willis Construction Roundtable, 1998
• Construction Lien Law in Pennsylvania and New Jersey
  Lorman Education Services, 1996
• Construction Law Bulletin
  - Eckert Seamans Cherin & Mellott (editor) 1992-1999

Selected Speaking Engagements

• "Fundamentals of Construction Contracts: Understanding the Issues in Pennsylvania," Lorman Education Services, Philadelphia, November 14, 2012
• "Benefits of Jury Research for Discovery, Mediation, Voir Dire and Trial," American Bar Association, Forum on the Construction Industry, Scottsdale, Arizona, April 2011
• "Radical Proposal for Reformation of Dispute Resolution in the Construction Industry," The Construction SuperConference, San Francisco, California, 2005
• "The Environmental Poltergist: How to Exercise it, and When You Can't, How to Minimize its Impact," The Construction SuperConference, San Francisco, California, 2004
• Pennsylvania Law For Design Professionals,
  Lorman Education Services
  Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 2000 and 2001
• Pennsylvania Law For Design Professionals
  Lorman Education Services
  Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, 2000
• Allocation of Risks by Contract
  Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1998
• Understanding Significant Changes to the American Institute of Architect Documents
  Lorman Education Services
  Reading, Pennsylvania, 1998
• Construction Lien Law in Pennsylvania and New Jersey
  Lorman Education Services
  King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, 1996
• Critical Path Method of Scheduling
  General Building Contractors' Association
  Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1990
• CPM Scheduling and Delay Analysis
  Contractors' Association of Eastern Pennsylvania
  Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1990
• Construction Scheduling
  Engineers' Club
  Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1989