Hendrick Phillips Salzman & Flatt
Our Attorneys - William D. Flatt, P.E., Esq.
William D. Flatt, P.E., Esq.
Email:wdf@hpsf-law.com
Law School: University of Memphis, with High Honors; Law Review, Managing Editor 1991
Graduate/Undergraduate: Masters of Science in Civil Engineering, University of Kansas; Bachelor of Civil Engineering, Auburn University, First Alternate for Outstanding Engineering Graduate; Outstanding Senior Engineer
Practice Areas: Construction Law; Government Contracts; Surety Law; Litigation; Arbitration; Mediation; Sales and Leasing of Construction Materials and Equipment; Commercial and Complex Litigation; Trademarks; General Collections, Including Lien and Bond Claims
Admitted to Practice: Georgia Supreme Court; Georgia Court of Appeals; Eleventh U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals; U.S. Northern District Court of Georgia; U.S. Middle District Court of Georgia
Assistant: Ida Hartman
Assistant's Email: ifh@hpsf-law.com
William D. Flatt maintains an international and nationwide construction law, litigation and alternative dispute resolution practice, which includes advising and representing general contractors, subcontractors, design professionals, manufacturers, suppliers and owners in aggressive prosecution and defense of claims.
Mr. Flatt has a wealth of construction experience as an engineer and attorney. He has written a number of articles on construction issues that have been published as chapters to books, in professional publications and national journals. Mr. Flatt also serves as general counsel to a couple of trade associations serving various segments of the construction industry. He has been recognized and named as a Georgia “Super Lawyer” in the Atlanta magazine and Georgia Super Lawyers publication.
Prior to practicing law, Mr. Flatt earned his Master of Science in Civil Engineering from the University of Kansas in 1985, where he was a graduate instructor and recipient of the Willey Fellowship. He received his Bachelor of Civil Engineering from Auburn University in 1982, where he was presented the First Alternate for Outstanding Engineering Graduate Award. Mr. Flatt also earned his Juris Doctor with high honors from Memphis State University in 1991, where he served as the Managing Editor of the Memphis State University Law Review and was recipient of the Sam Myar Memorial Scholarship. Although he no longer is a practicing engineer, he received his professional engineering licenses for several states as well as received the Quality Spotlight Award from his former employer, Burns & McDonnell Engineering.
Bar Admissions Trial and Appellate Courts of Georgia: Northern and Middle Federal District Courts of Georgia; Eleventh United States Circuit Court of Appeals
Professional Engineer: Alabama and Georgia
Professional Experience: Hendrick, Phillips, Salzman, & Flatt, Atlanta, Georgia Attorney, 1991 to present
Burns & McDonnell Engineering, Kansas City, Missouri Staff Engineer, 1984-1988 Quality Spotlight Award
Lectures
Construction Lien Law in Georgia: Using the Sword and Shield Effectively, Lorman Education Services, Atlanta, Georgia, July 26, 2007, Additional Insured and Indemnification Requirements, Associated Builders & Contractors of Georgia, Inc., Pine Mountain, Georgia, June 23, 2007; Prompt Payment Laws (Federal Prompt Payment Act and Georgia Prompt Payment Laws), Associated Builders & Contractors of Georgia, Inc., Pine Mountain, Georgia, June 22, 2007; Controlling Runaway Costs—Price Escalations, Georgia Utility Contractors Association, Inc., Amelia Island, Florida, June 15, 2007; “Killer” Contract Clauses, Associated Builders & Contractors of Georgia, Inc., Atlanta, Georgia, June 6, 2007; “Liens and Bonds” – Protecting, Preserving and Asserting Your Lien and Payment Bond Rights in Georgia, Associated Builders & Contractors of Georgia, Inc., Atlanta, Georgia, April 20, 2007; Top Ten Things that Get Contractors into Legal Trouble on a Construction Job—And How to Avoid Them!, Associated Builders & Contractors of Georgia, Inc., Atlanta, Georgia, March 14, 2007; Price Escalation Issues, Assocaited builders & Contractors of Georgia, Inc., Atlanta, Georgia, February 22, 2007; How to Keep that Payment Flowing: Payment is the Life Blood of Every Contractor and When It Stops or Slows Down, Business Death is Not Far Away, Associated Builders & Contracxtors of Georgia, Inc., February 15, 2007; Avoiding Death by Waiver, Associated General Contractors, Inc., Georgia Branch, Atlanta, Georgia, September 19, 2006; Surreptitious Recordings and Searches - Telephone Calls, Voice Messages and E-mails - Legally Permissible????, Georgia Concrete and Product Association, Ponte Vedre Beach, Florida, July 22, 2006; Performance Specifications - Do You Know Them When You See Them (and why some contracts may bite you), Associated Builders & Contractors, Greensboro, Georgia, June 13, 2006; Liens and Bonds - Property Preserving and Asserting Your Lien and Payment Bond Rights in Georgia, Associated Builders & Contractors, Atlanta, Georgia, May 10, 2006; Avoiding Death by Waiver - Waiver and Release Forms - Traps for the Unwary, Associated Builders & Contractors, Atlanta, Georgia, April 12, 2006; Purchase Order Tango - How to Wage and Win the Battle of the Forms in Buying and Selling Construction Materials, Associated Builders & Contractors, Atlanta, Georgia, April 12, 2006; Construction Delay Claims in Georgia, Lorman Education Services, Atlanta, Georgia, February 17, 2006;
Articles
W. Flatt, The Design/Build Deskbook (Georgia Chapter, American Bar Assocaition, 2004, 3d ed.); Co-author, Construction Business Handbook, Pitfalls of Subcontracts: From the Subcontractor’s Point of View, ch. 7 (Aspen 2004); W. Flatt, The Design Build Deskbook (Georgia Chapter, American Bar Association, 2000, 2d ed.); W. Flatt, Who is Liable for Design Specs?, Concrete Construction, Vol. 44, No. 1 (Jan 1999); W. Flatt, The Design/Build Process: A Guide to Licensing and Procurement Requirements in the 50 States and Canada, Georgia Chapter, American Bar Association (1997); W. Flatt, The Design/Build Cookbook, Georgia Chapter, American Bar Association, Forum on the Construction Industry (1996); Flatt, Who Is Liable for Design Specs?, Concrete Repair Digest, Vol. 6, No. 2 (April/May 1995); Co-author, Who Is Liable for Substituted Materials, Concrete Repair Digest, Vol. 5, No. 3 (June/July 1994); Co-author, ADR–A Practical Guide to Resolve Construction Disputes, Pre-Arbitration Discovery, ch. 11 (American Arbitration Association 1994); Flatt, Don't Let Looming Language Blue Your Understanding of a Contract Document, Professional Roofing, Nov. 1993; Co-author, Construction, Mechanics' & Materialmen's Liens–Defending Against a Construction Lien Claim, Institute of Continuing Legal Education in Georgia, Construction Law Seminar, June 4, 1993; Co-author, When the Earth Moves and Buildings Tumble, Who Will Pay?–Tort Liability and Defenses for Earthquake Damage Within the New Madrid Fault Zone, 22 Mem. St. U.L. Rev. 1 (1991); Note, The Expanding Liability of Design Professionals, 20 Mem. St. U.L. Rev. 611 (1990); Case Comment, Who Bears the Burden of Proving an Alternative Measure of Damages: Nutzel v. Goodwin, 20 Mem. St. U.L. Rev. 465 (1990); Co-author, Plan for Security During Airfield Construction Projects, Airport Services, Vol. 28, No. 12, 1988. Author, monthly publication: The Subcontractor, American Subcontractor Association, March 1994 to 1998 (co-author). Publications Citing Mr. Flatt's Articles: Note, Walking the Line Between Contract and Torn in Construction Disputes: Assessing the Use of Negligent Misrepresentation to Recover Economic Loss After Presnell, 95 Ky. L.J. 145 (2007); C. Circo, Contract Theory and Contract Practice: Allocating Design Responsibility in the Construction Industry, 58 Fla. L. Rev. 561 (2006);
Professional Achievements/Affiliations
Associations: National Society of Professional Engineers (1991-present); Professional Engineers in Construction (1991-present); American Society of Civil Engineers (1982-present); Georgia Society of Professional Engineers (1991-present) (Member, Legislative Affairs Committee (1993-1997), Member, Ethics Committee (1992-1997)); Associated Builders & Contractors (1991-present) (Member, Government Relations Committee (1992-present), Chairman, Government Relations Committee (1994-95; 1998-99), Member, Programs Committee (1996-1997; 2002-present)); American Bar Association (1992-present); Chi Epsilon (National Engineering Honors Society), Editor (1981-present); Tau Beta Pi (National Engineering Honors Society) (1981-present)
Contributing Author, "Design Build Deskbook", Fouth Edition, American Bar Association, Forum on the Construction Industry, 2010.
Representative Construction Projects
Successfully represented general contractor terminated and sued by large REIT for over $100 Million and secured several Million in favor of general contractor.
Secured favorable resolution and over $1 Million for general contractor and its surety where general contractor was terminated by governmental authority and faced multi-million dollar claim
Successfully represented general contractor terminated by hotel owner and secured unpaid contract balance
Successfully defended general contractor and principal shareholder against $36M asbestos contamination lawsuit
Secured arbitration award in favor of large school district that completely defeated asbestos abatement claim by general contractor
Represented county and secured positive resolution of its claims against general contractor for workmanship and EIFS issues
Represented owner and secured favorable resolution against general contractor for defective EIFS installation claim, which included an active fraud finding by the court
Successfully defended owner against $15 Million claim by general contractor by securing summary judgment in favor of owner that completely defeated claim
Successfully mediated claim of owner against general contractor, design professionals and others for using improper materials to construct school
Successfully defended general contractor against $2 Million claim by trade contractor by securing summary judgment in favor of general contractor that completely defeated claim
Secured favorable arbitration award over $500k for international manufacturer against reseller involving claims for private label and custom manufactured devices
Secured judgment in excess of $600k for manufacturer against sales representative for wrongful taking of inventory
Successfully defended contractor against environmental contamination lawsuit by owner, which included masterminding a successful GUST fund claim
Secured favorable judgment on behalf of supplier against contractor and its surety for failure to pay for materials supplied for jail project
Secured favorable judgment on behalf of trade contractor against contractor involving a large automotive plant installation
Secured court order over $45.6M in favor of contractor against developer
Successfully obtained the reinstatement of the Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) certification for trade contractor
Reported Cases
Dalton Paving & Const., Inc. v. South Green Const. of Georgia, Inc., 284 Ga. App. 506, 643 S.E.2d 754 (2007); Ellis-Don Const., Inc. v. HNTB Corp., 169 N.C. App. 630, 610 S.E.2d 293 (2005); Ellis-Don Const., Inc. v. HKS, 353 F. Supp. 2d 603 (M.D.N.C. 2004); Holloway Const. Co. v. Department of Transp., 218 Ga. App. 243, 461 S.E.2d 257 (1995); Department of Transp. v. Fru-Con Const. Corp., 207 Ga. App. 180, 427 S.E.2d 513 (1993)
