How did you become involved in the Construction & Design Industry?
My path into construction began in architecture school at the University of Florida. During my last semester, I studied abroad in Italy where our program focused on mixed-use commercial and residential design for an entire city block. Analyzing how European infrastructure informed city planning has shaped the modern world is what first captured my interest in infrastructure construction.
After earning my bachelor’s degree, I went on to study construction management at the Rinker School of Construction Management, also at the University of Florida. My academic focus started in architectural design and commercial construction, but my early career was spent in heavy civil and infrastructure construction.
I spent four years in the field as a project and construction engineer on large-scale infrastructure projects. That hands-on experience gave me a front-row seat to see how contracts and permitting shape the success of a project, and it’s ultimately what drew me toward the legal and contractual side of construction. That interest led me to law school and, eventually, to practicing as a real estate, project development and construction attorney here at Husch Blackwell.
What is something that Husch Blackwell is doing that you consider innovative?
My experience working for a contractor with extensive in-house project capabilities provided me with a first-hand understanding of how integrated planning, centralized responsibility, and operational expertise contribute to efficient and successful project delivery.
Working for a contractor with the internal capacity to self-perform diverse project functions provided valuable insight into the efficiencies and accountability that can result from centralizing responsibility for project management, technical services, and workforce resources. By directly executing and overseeing these functions, the organization developed institutional knowledge grounded in first-hand operational experience, fostering a deeper understanding of project requirements, risks, and practical challenges. Observing this integrated model in practice demonstrated how coordinated planning and in-house capabilities can streamline project delivery from inception through completion, a perspective that continues to inform my approach to advising clients and collaborating with colleagues.
What poses a challenge, risk, or opportunity for your clients, and what is your team doing to address it?
From my time working in construction, prior to law school, I saw firsthand how much value comes from thoughtfully onboarding and training personnel into critical positions. Strong onboarding reinforces the value of standardized processes, avoids unnecessary ‘reinventing the wheel,’ and supports consistency and continuity across a project, as well as the whole company.
My experience in construction shapes how I think about continuity on the legal side as well. At Husch Blackwell, we place a strong emphasis on integrating new attorneys and team members thoughtfully into client relationships, rather than treating onboarding as an afterthought. That means pairing new team members with experienced attorneys on client matters early, being deliberate about knowledge transfer, and building enough bench strength to ensure every client experiences continuity of service—even as individual team members’ roles evolve over time. It is also part of how we think about succession planning more broadly, which ensures that as senior attorneys’ practices evolve, clients always have a well-prepared team who understands their business and objectives.
What is something you view as an emerging trend in the industry, and what are your perspectives on it?
Digitalization is probably the trend I find most interesting right now, particularly the growth of digital construction models and building information modeling, or BIM. I’m also seeing an increasing use of smart plan-reading programs, which allows teams to log RFIs, progress images, and submittals directly from the jobsite in real time.
Beyond that, automated tools such as robotic welding equipment and 3D-printed construction materials are starting to make their way onto jobsites, and AI-driven cost and safety analysis are quickly becoming part of how projects are planned and managed. It’s an exciting time to be advising clients on how to structure their contracts and risk allocation around these newer technologies.
Any final thoughts on what to keep an eye on in the near future in the Construction & Design industry?
I’d encourage clients to keep a close eye on how artificial intelligence continues to reshape construction workflows, particularly around automating project schedules, submittal review, RFI drafting, and specification review. These tools have quickly moved from novelty to necessity.
I’d also watch the continued advancement of 3D printing for construction materials. As that technology matures, it has the potential to change not just how projects are built, but how they’re contracted for and insured, which is exactly the kind of shift where having the right legal counsel involved early can make a real difference.
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