What’s New?
2018 was a great year for the firm. In addition to growth across all of our offices, we celebrated our 30th anniversary with a series of charitable events, giving back to our local communities. As the new year kicks off, we are excited to announce a new practice area: Construction Contracts & Risk Management. You can learn more about it on page 4. We are also proud to announce Bob Ruggieri’s promotion to partner. You can learn more about his practice and time at Cohen Seglias in the Q&A on page 2. Please also welcome our new associate editor, Christopher Sexton! Enjoy this special anniversary issue of Construction in Brief!
Ashling Ehrhardt, Co-Editor-in-Chief
Allie Hallmark, Co-Editor-in-Chief
Christopher Sexton, Associate Editor
Congratulations to Robert G. Ruggieri!
We are pleased to announce that Bob Ruggieri was promoted to Partner in the Government Contracting Group, effective January 1st. Bob focuses his practice in the areas of government contracts, procurement, and construction. His clients, which include prime contractors, subcontractors, and suppliers, routinely seek his advice in a variety of federal contracting matters. Bob has enjoyed success for clients prosecuting and defending bid protests at the Government Accountability Office and the United States Court of Federal Claims. Similarly, Bob has successfully litigated contract disputes throughout the country in federal and state forums.
E-Newsletter
We are transitioning Construction in Brief to an electronic newsletter. Look out for our email version going forward. You can also subscribe on our website.
New Faces
In 2018, the firm saw a great deal of expansion. Please join us in welcoming our new hires in Philadelphia, Newark, and New York.
Richard J. Fusco is a Construction Associate in our New York office, where he focuses his practice in construction litigation. He assists contractors, subcontractors, and other clients with research and preparation of court documents. Before joining Cohen Seglias, Rich was a judicial intern in the Southern District of New York for the Honorable Paul A. Crotty and the Honorable Stewart D. Aaron.
Emily M. Martin joined the Philadelphia office as an Associate in the Construction Group. She concentrates her practice in construction litigation in both state and federal courts, as well as in alternative dispute resolution settings. Before joining the firm, Emily was a litigator at a boutique litigation firm in Miami where she represented clients in construction-related matters. Most recently, Emily was a litigator with a national insurance defense firm in Philadelphia where she represented insurance corporations in construction defect matters.
Whitney Patience O’Reilly is an Associate in our Business Transactions group in Philadelphia. She provides business counseling for clients across a wide array of industries. Clients rely on Whitney for advice on corporate matters, including the purchase and sale of businesses and entity formation, and she regularly drafts governance documents. Whitney also has experience in business succession planning, and creating estate planning documents and administering trusts and estates. In addition, she represents clients in a variety of real estate matters.
Sydney Pierce joined the firm as a Construction Associate in the Philadelphia office after working as a summer associate with us last year. She concentrates her practice in construction litigation, assisting contractors, subcontractors, and other parties with research and preparation of court filings on a variety of construction-related issues. Prior to joining Cohen Seglias, Sydney completed an internship with Community Legal Services of Philadelphia, focusing on consumer protection efforts related to property tax foreclosure.
Martin L. Seidman joined the Philadelphia office as a Senior Analyst for special projects, including payroll audits, wage and hour matters, and valuation and documentation of financial components of construction-related claims. He has over 35 years of experience in union relations, collective bargaining agreement negotiations, multi-employer pension and welfare benefit plans, self-insured health benefit plan administration, and 401(k) retirement plans. Previously, Marty was the Treasurer and CFO of a mid-size, multi-state, privately owned manufacturer of sheet metal products for residential construction.
Christopher W. Sexton is a Construction Associate in our Philadelphia office. He represents owners, contractors, and subcontractors on both public and private projects in a wide variety of construction matters, including those involving negligence, breach of contract, breach of warranty, Consumer Fraud Act claims, and other complex litigation. Chris also analyzes construction bids, AIA construction contracts, and change orders. Prior to joining Cohen Seglias, Chris was a construction and procurement associate at a prominent New Jersey law firm.
Alexander F. Spilberg joined the firm as a Construction Associate in our New Jersey office. He represents and advises general contractors, subcontractors, design professionals, and construction managers in complex commercial and construction matters. Before joining Cohen Seglias, Alex served as associate general counsel for Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP, a leading, international architecture and engineering firm. This experience provides him with a unique approach to addressing construction and design related issues, communicating with his clients, negotiating, and resolving disputes as efficiently as possible.
We Moved!
Please update your records for our Wilmington, DE and Exton, PA offices.
Wilmington, DE
500 Delaware Avenue
Suite 730
Wilmington, DE 19801P: 302.425.5089
F: 302.425.5097Exton, PA
585 Exton Commons
Exton, PA 19341P: 610.363.8400
F: 215.564.3066