Angela Marie Richie

Angela M. Richie is Managing Partner of the Louisville office of GRSM and is Co-Chair of the Construction practice group. She frequently consults with steel fabricators and other members of the structural steel industry on issues such as: claims for non-payment; allegations of defective fabrication and erection of structural steel; OSHA violations and related retaliation actions; application of the Buy America(n) statutes and regulations; and contracts between steel fabricators, general contractors, and downstream detailers, structural engineers, and erectors. Angela is a frequent presenter at regional steel fabricator association meetings and seminars hosted by the American Institute of Steel Construction.

Angela also assists owners, contractors, and subcontractors on a variety of construction issues ranging from construction contracts, collection of unpaid amounts, OSHA violations, mechanic’s liens, workers compensation immunity disputes, and prevailing wage disputes.

Angela became a LEED Accredited Professional (LEED AP) on March 26, 2009, and uses her knowledge of sustainable practices to advise clients how to maximize “green” design and construction. She was the first attorney in the Commonwealth of Kentucky to achieve Green Advantage® certification in Commercial and Residential construction.

Admissions

• Kentucky
• West Virginia (Inactive)
• Illinois 
• U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth and Eleventh Federal Circuits
• U.S. District Court, Eastern and Western Districts of Kentucky
• U.S. District Court, Southern District of West Virginia
• U.S. District Court, District of Columbia

Memberships

• American Bar Association
• American Bar Association, Forum on Construction Law, Former Governing Committee; Chair, Membership Committee
• Kentucky Bar Association
• Trial Law Institute 
• Diversity Law Institute

Community Involvement

• Southeast Christian Church, member, Crestwood Campus

• Assisted numerous structural steel fabricators and other members of the structural steel industry with the collection of outstanding amounts owed for labor and materials provided to various projects located around the country;
• Assisted numerous structural steel fabricators with claims for additional compensation arising from changes in connection design complexity, changes to or errors in the structural design drawings, and impacts and delays arising from changes to fabrication and erection schedules;
• Successfully defended a steel fabricator in a multi-million dollar claim for alleged defective fabrication;
• Drafted numerous down-stream subcontracts between structural steel fabricators and their erectors, detailers, and vendors;
• Consulted on numerous up-stream subcontracts between structural steel fabricators and general contractors;
• Successfully defended numerous structural steel fabricators from OSHA citations arising from fabrication shop and jobsite fatalities, welding fume citations, and other OSHA Subpart R citations;
• Drafted and negotiated multi-million dollar contracts on behalf of owners, contractors, and subcontractors;
• Obtained payment of outstanding contract balances on behalf of contractors, subcontractors, and material suppliers;
• Obtained summary judgment for a large construction company which resulted in the dismissal of personal injury claims covered by workers compensation insurance; and
• Successfully defended a client in an OSHA dispute which resulted in OSHA withdrawing all of the citations and penalties originally assessed against the client.

Publications & Presentations

• "How to Build a Better Mouse Trap: Putting Together Change Orders that Will Get Paid", Texas Structural Steel Institute, San Antonio, TX, October 25, 2024
• "Watch Out For that Mine Field.  Legal Best Practices for Steel Professionals: Tips and strategies to mitigate risks and avoid common legal pitfalls in the steel industry", SDS2 Summit, Louisville, KY, September 25, 2024 
• "Who's Afraid of The Big Bad Wolf?  OSHA Lessons learned", Pacific Northwest Steel Fabricator Association, Redmond, OR, September 19, 2024 
•  More In-Depth Analysis Details on the Davis-Bacon Act Overhaul, Construction Executive (October 2023)
• "Don't Go Chasing Waterfalls, Please Stick to the Rivers and the Lakes that You're Used to." Best Practices in Selecting, Negotiating With, and Managing Downstream Subcontractors and Vendors, May 19, 2023
• Back to the Future: How to Manage the Legal Risks Associated with BIM, Scanning Technology, and Smart Contracts, February 14, 2023.
• "I'm Gonna Make Him an Offer He Can't Refuse," Lessons Learned From the Godfather, or in This Case the Code of Standard Practice, January 10, 2023.
• Back to the Future: Exploring Steel Industry Tech from a Legal Perspective, 2022 SDS2 Annual Conference, San Antonio, TX, October 19, 2022
• “Toto, We’re Not in Kansas Anymore”: Best Practices for Supporting and Obtaining Payment of Change Orders, GRSM Steel Team Fabricators Webinar, June 28, 2022
• “Roads? Where we’re going we don’t need roads!” Back to the Future: A Look at Current and Future Technology for the Steel Industry from a Legal Perspective, 2022 VCSSFA Annual Meeting, Wild Dunes, SC, September 24, 2022
• The Times They Keep A-Changin’ – Staying Current to Avoid Sinking Like a Stone. A Look at Recent Developments in the Construction Industry, 2022 PNSFA Annual Conference, Sunriver Resort, Sunriver, OR, September 23, 2022
• Shortages (Lions), Escalation (Tigers), and One-sided Contracts (Bears), Oh My! A Look at Current Challenges Facing Steel Fabricators and Ways to Use Good Proposal Language, Select Contract Modifications, and the Code of Standard Practice to Mitigate Risks, 2022 CFA Spring Meeting, Indianapolis, In., May 2, 2022
• Manufacturing Security: Cost Effective Cybersecurity for the Steel Industry, GRSM Steel Fabricators Webinar, April 12, 2022
• Lions (Shortages and Escalation), and Tigers (Collecting Payment), and Bears (OSHA), OH MY! Current Issues Facing the Structural Steel Industry, 2022 AGA Annual Conference, Clearwater, Florida, April 5, 2022
• “Out With the Old, In With the New” Downstream Contracts, GRSM Steel Fabricators Webinar, February 1, 2022
• "20 Tips for Better Contracts in Structural Fabrication," The FABRICATOR, (January 2022)
• Purple Haze: Construction Industry Employers’ Rights in an Age Where Pot Is Legal, GRSM Steel Fabricators Webinar, November 3, 2021
• “Lawyers, Guns and Money”: What You Need to Know About Defending and Prosecuting Claims Before You Get into a Dispute, GRSM Steel Fabricators Webinar, November 2, 2021
• “I’ve Got a Bad Feeling About This.”  Change Orders, 2021 TSSI Meeting, Galveston, TX, October 15, 2021
• The Best Tool in Your Tool Belt: What You Need to Know about the AISC Code of Standard Practice and How You Can Use It to Your Benefit, GRSM Steel Fabricators Webinar, October 5, 2021
• When did Steel Fabricators Become the Bank?, 2021 Annual PNSFA Meeting, Couer d’Alene, ID, September 23, 2021
• When did Steel Fabricators Become the Bank?, 2021 VCSSFA Annual Meeting Wild Dunes, SC, September 24, 2021
• “I’ve Got a Bad Feeling about This”: What You Can Do to Avoid Having that “Bad Feeling” when You Are Trying to Collect Change Orders, GRSM Steel Fabricators Webinar, September 7, 2021
• Recent Cases That Are Impacting Relevant Construction Case Law, GRSM Steel Fabricators Webinar, August 3, 2021
• It’s a Hard Day: COVID-19, FMLA and Wage and Hour Issues, GRSM Steel Fabricators Webinar, July 21, 2021
• Common Communication Errors to Avoid, Which Often Lead to Disputes, GRSM Steel Fabricators Webinar, June 8, 2021
• May the Fourth Be With You: Tips to Make Sure You Get Paid, GRSM Steel Fabricators Webinar, May 4, 2021
• 14 Contract Terms You Should Look for in Every Contract Before You Bid (Or Sign) so That You Can Avoid Saying, “I’ve Got a Bad Feeling About This!,” GRSM Steel Fabricators Webinar, March 2, 2021
• No Good Deed Goes Unpunished: What You Need to Know About Design-Assist Projects Before You Bid and Sign the Contract in Order to Prevent a Bet the Company Mistake, GRSM Steel Fabricators Webinar, February 2, 2021
• Stayin’ Alive: What You Need to Know and Do on the Front End to Make Sure Your Company Gets Paid, GRSM Steel Fabricators Webinar, October 27, 2020
• Keeping OSHA Out of Your Bank Account, GRSM Steel Fabricators Webinar, September 10, 2020
• “I Can’t Make it on Time”: How to Defend and Prosecute Delay and Acceleration Claims, GRSM Steel Fabricators Webinar, August 27, 2020
• “Livin’ on a Prayer”: What Due Diligence Do You Need to Do Before You Bid or Start Work?, GRSM Steel Fabricators Webinar, July 27, 2020
• “Lawyers, Guns and Money”: What You Need to Know About Defending and Prosecuting Claims Before You Get into a Dispute, GRSM Steel Fabricators Webinar, June 2, 2020
• Every Rose Has Its Thorn: It’s Time to Take Another Look at Your Subcontracts, GRSM Steel Fabricators Webinar, May 5, 2020
• 14 Contract Terms You Should Look for in Every Contract Before You Bid (Or Sign) so That You Can Avoid Saying, “I’ve Got a Bad Feeling About This!”, GRSM Steel Fabricators Webinar, April 2, 2020
• The Best Tool in Your Tool Belt: What You Need to Know about the AISC Code of Standard Practice and How You Can Use It to Your Benefit, GRSM Steel Fabricators Webinar, March 3, 2020
• “I’ve Got a Bad Feeling about This”: What You Can Do to Avoid Having that “Bad Feeling” when You Are Trying to Collect Change Orders, GRSM Steel Fabricators Webinar, February 4, 2020
• “No Good Deed Goes Unpunished: What you need to know about design-assist projects before you bid and sign the contract in order to prevent a bet the company mistake.” Pacific Northwest Steel Fabricator Association, Sunriver, OR, September 20, 2019
• "I've Got A Bad Feeling About This" What Can You Do To Avoid Having That “Bad Feeling” When You Are Trying To Collect Changes?” Pacific Northwest Steel Fabricator Association, Sunriver, OR, September 20, 2019
• "No Good Deed Goes Unpunished:  What You Need to Know About Design-Assist Projects Before You Bid and Sign the Contract in Order to Prevent a Bet-the-Company Mistake," Southern Association of Steel Fabricators (SASF) Ponte Vedra Convention, Ponte Vedra, FL, June 7, 2019 
• "What Fabricators Need to Know About Providing Early Involvement Pre-Construction Services verses Engaging in a Design-Assist Contract," Early Involvement & Marketing Workshop for the Structural Steel Industry, American Institute of Steel Construction, Minneapolis, MN, May 23, 2019
• “What You Need to Know About Defending and Prosecuting Claims - Before You Get into a Dispute”,  NASCC: The Steel Conference, St. Louis, MO, April 3, 2019
• “It's Time to Take Another Look at Your Subcontracts”, NASCC: The Steel Conference, St. Louis, MO, April 3, 2019.
• “Defending and Prosecuting Delay Claims”, NASCC: The Steel Conference, St. Louis, MO, April 3, 2019
• “14 Contract Terms You Should Look for in Every Contract Before You Bid (Or Sign) so That You Can Avoid Saying "I've Got a Bad Feeling About This!", Webinar for Structural Steel Industry, March 7, 2019
• 14 Contract Terms You Should Look for in Every Contract Before You Bid (Or Sign) so That You Can Avoid Saying "I've Got a Bad Feeling About This!", Webinar for Structural Steel Industry, December 19, 2018
• "Ethics, Laws and Regulations by GRSM" Webinar for the Steel Joist Institute, December 18, 2018
• "What Fabricators Need to Know About Providing Early Involvement Pre-Construction Services verses Engaging in a Design-Assist Contract," Early Involvement & Marketing Workshop for the Structural Steel Industry, American Institute of Steel Construction, Tampa, FL, December 13, 2018
• "What Fabricators Need to Know About Providing Early Involvement Pre-Construction Services verses Engaging in a Design-Assist Contract," Early Involvement & Marketing Workshop for the Structural Steel Industry, American Institute of Steel Construction, Raleigh, NC, November 14, 2018
• “Livin on a Prayer”: What Due Diligence Do You Need To Do Before You Bid or Start Work?”, AISC Future Leaders Ideas Lab, Austin, TX, October 11, 2018
• “Livin on a Prayer”: What Due Diligence Do You Need To Do Before You Bid or Start Work?” Pacific Northwest Steel Fabricator Association, Sunriver, OR, September 20, 2018
• “Lawyers, Guns and Money” – What you need to know about  Defending and Prosecuting Claims before you get into a dispute,” Pacific Northwest Steel Fabricator Association, Sunriver, OR, September 20, 2018
• “What Fabricators Need to Know About Providing Early Involvement Pre-Construction Services versus Engaging in a Design-Assist Contract,” Early Involvement & Marketing Workshop for the Structural Steel Industry, American Institute of Steel Construction, Washington, DC, September 6, 2018
• “What Fabricators Need to Know About Providing Early Involvement Pre-Construction Services versus Engaging in a Design-Assist Contract,” Early Involvement & Marketing Workshop for the Structural Steel Industry, American Institute of Steel Construction, Elizabeth, NJ, August 2, 2018
• “What Fabricators Need to Know About Providing Early Involvement Pre-Construction Services versus Engaging in a Design-Assist Contract,” Early Involvement & Marketing Workshop for the Structural Steel Industry, American Institute of Steel Construction, Los Angeles, CA, June 15, 2018
• "Battle of the Forms: Dealing with Downstream Subcontracts," Southern Association of Steel Fabricators (SASF) Ponte Vedra Convention, June 8, 2018
• "Every Rose Has Its Thorn: It’s Time to Take Another Look at Your Subcontracts," Texas Structural Steel Institute, Austin, TX, May 11, 2018
• “What Fabricators Need to Know About Providing Early Involvement Pre-Construction Services versus Engaging in a Design-Assist Contract,” Early Involvement & Marketing Workshop for the Structural Steel Industry, American Institute of Steel Construction, Plainville, MA, March 8, 2018
• “I’ve Got A Bad Feeling About This: What Can you do to Avoid Having that “Bad Feeling” When you are Trying to Collect Changes?” Virginia Carolinas Structural Steel Fabricators Association, Charleston, SC, April 26-28, 2018
• "Every Rose Has Its Thorn: It’s Time to Take Another Look at Your Subcontracts," Virginia Carolinas Structural Steel Fabricators Association, April 26-28, 2018
• “I Can’t Make it on Time: How to Defend and Prosecute Delay Claims,” NASCC: The Steel Conference, Baltimore, MD, April 13, 2018
• “Lawyers, Guns and Money: What You Need to Know about Defending and Prosecuting Claims Before You Get Into a Dispute," NASCC: The Steel Conference, Baltimore, MD, April 12, 2018
• “You Never Give Your Money: How to Avoid Bet the Company Mistakes” NASCC: The Steel Conference, Baltimore, MD, April 12, 2018
• “Livin on a Prayer: What Due Diligence do you Need to do Before You Bid or Start Work?” NASCC: The Steel Conference, Baltimore, MD, April 12, 2018
• "Every Rose Has Its Thorn: It’s Time to Take Another Look at Your Subcontracts," NASCC: The Steel Conference, Baltimore, MD, April 12, 2018
• "What Fabricators Need to Know About Providing Early Involvement Pre-Construction Services versus Engaging in a Design-Assist Contract," Early Involvement & Marketing Workshop for the Structural Steel Industry, American Institute of Steel Construction, Atlanta, GA January 25, 2018
• "High Court Enforces "Pay-if-Pay" Clause Protecting CM; But Allows Fabricator and Erector to Recover Extras Directly From Owner," with Joseph L. Hardesty, David B. Ratterman, Stites & Harbison Client Alert, December 18, 2017
• "Ethics, Laws and Regulations," Steel Joist Institute 2017 Webinar, December 6, 2017
• "Understanding & Mitigating Risks," Early Involvement & Marketing Workshop for the Structural Streel Industry, November 9, 2017
• "It's Time to Stop 'Livin On a Prayer:' Front End Due Diligence That Needs to Be Completed Before You Bid and Sign a Contract," Summer Central Fabricators Association Meeting, Chicago, IL, August 7, 2017
• "What Fabricators Need to Know About Providing Early Involvement Pre-Construction Services versus Engaging in a Design-Assist Contract," Early Involvement & Marketing Workshop for the Structural Steel Industry, American Institute of Steel Construction, Philadelphia, PA, July 20, 2017
• "What Fabricators Need to Know About Providing Early Involvement Pre-Construction Services Versus Engaging in a Design-Assist Contract," Early Involvement & Marketing Workshop for the Structural Steel Industry, American Institute of Steel Construction, Marlborough, MA, June 22, 2017
• "Every Rose Has its Thorn," Southern Association of Steel Fabricators (SASF) Ponte Vedra Convention, June 10, 2017
• "The Changing Legal Landscape," Virginia-Carolinas Structural Steel Fabricators Association 2017 Annual Meeting, April 28, 2017
• "Keeping OSHA Out of Your Bank Account," with S. Kelly Gilliam, NASCC: The Steel Conference, San Antonio, TX, March 23, 2017
• "Subcontracts: They May be the Most Important Document You Issue or Negotiate if a Problem Occurs," with Joseph L. Hardesty,  NASCC: The Steel Conference, San Antonio, TX, March 23, 2017
• "The Importance of Front End Alignment: What You Need to Know about Bid Documents, Construction Contracts and Contract Formation," with David B. Ratterman, NASCC: The Steel Conference, San Antonio, TX, March 23, 2017
• "We Need Construction Lawyers, Guns and Money: What You Need to Know about Defending and Prosecuting Claims Before You Get Into a Dispute," with Joseph L. Hardesty, David B. Ratterman,  NASCC: The Steel Conference, San Antonio, TX, March 23, 2017
• "Bet the Company Contract Clauses and How to Avoid Them," with Joseph L. Hardesty, NASCC: The Steel Conference, San Antonio, TX, March 23, 2017
• "Ethics, Laws and Regulations," Steel Joist Institute Live Webinar, November 16, 2016
• "What Fabricators Need to Know About Providing Early Involvement Pre-Construction Services Versus Engaging in a Design-Assist Contract," AISC Marketing Boot Camp on Early Involvement, Denver, CO, November 10, 2016 
• "I Should Have Known Better: Construction & Design Defects & Project Delays," ABA Forum on Construction Law Governing Committee Liaison to the 2016 Fall Meeting, Chicago, IL, October 6-7, 2016
• "Contracts by Star Wars: What to Avoid So You Don't Say I Have a Bad Feeling About this," SASF Convention, Ponte Verde, Fla., June 9, 2016
• "Do I need to be a lawyer to Fabricate Steel?," 2016 Annual Spring Meeting, Virginia Carolinas Structural Steel Fabricators Association (VCSSFA), Charleston, South Carolina, April 28-30, 2016
• "Legal Primer for Project Managers," 2016 NASCC The Steel Conference, Orlando, Florida, April 13-15, 2016
• "Killer Contract Clauses," Webinar, Associated Builders and Contractors, Inc., September 1, 2015
• "Legal Issues (Environmental Law, OSHA, Contract Clauses, etc.)," AISC: Future Leaders Ideas Lab, Hilton Seelbach Hotel, Louisville, Ky., August 28, 2015
• "OSHA Is Coming . . . Now What?," AISC: COSP Meeting, Steel Joist Institute, Rosemont, Ill., August 18, 2015
• "Documentation Requirements for the Project Manager," Webinar, Associated Builders and Contractors, Inc., May 5, 2015
• "Fabricator/Erector Right to Pay for Extra Work Delayed by Legal Morass - How to Prevent This From Happening to You," 2015 VCSSFA Annual Meeting, Charleston, S.C., April 24, 2015
• "Show Me the Money! Using Prompt Payment Statutes to Your Advantage," Webinar Presenter, Associated Builders and Contractors, Indiana/Kentucky Chapter, April 2, 2015
• "OSHA Showed Up. OSHA Issued Your Company a Citation . . . Now What?," Stites & Harbison Legal Update, March 20, 2015
• "My Favorite Mistakes: What Doesn’t Bankrupt You Makes You Stronger," 2015 ABA Forum on Construction Law Midwinter Meeting, Co-Chair, Scottsdale, Ariz., January 29-30, 2015

Education

J.D., magna cum laude, University of Louisville Louis D. Brandeis School of Law, 2004

B.S., with high honors, Civil Engineering, University of Louisville, Speed Scientific School, 2001

Honors

Construction Lawyers Society of America

Martindale-Hubbell® AV-Preeminent® Peer Review Rated

Best Lawyers in America® "Lawyer of the Year," Litigation - Construction, Louisville (2022, 2023)

Best Lawyers in America® distinction in Construction Law (2018-2025), Litigation - Construction (2021-2025)

Kentucky Super Lawyers®, Rising Star (2013-19)

Louisville Magazine, "Top Lawyer" in the category of construction law (2012-16)

Benchmark Litigation, Under 40 Hot List (2016)

Today's Woman, "Way to Go Woman" in the category of Professional (2013)

ABA Forum on the Construction Industry, nominated and selected as finalist for the ABA National Outstanding Young Lawyer Award  (2011)