AI in Construction Law: Managing Risks and Opportunities

Denis Serkin is a partner in Peckar & Abramson’s New Yorkand New Jersey offices who focuses the majority of his practice on constructionlaw and construction dispute resolution. He represents construction managers,general contractors and design builders in transactional matters, through projectconstruction, and in the resolution of disputes through litigation,arbitration, and mediation. He is chair of the firm’s International Practice.

Denis regularly assists clients in a number of market segments,including construction management, general and EPC contracting, power/energy,and infrastructure, and is highly experienced in the areas of constructiondefect, delay and disruption claims, change-order and extra work claims,mechanics’ liens, and public bidding challenges. He has extensive experiencelitigating cases in federal and state courts, as well as in arbitration andmediation. Denis is also a highly sought-after advisor, helping clients draftand negotiate construction agreements that utilize both custom and industrystandard forms.

Denis’s experience includes the representation of clients acrossthe United States and internationally, and routinely assists clients withcompliance issues—particularly those regarding the United States ForeignCorrupt Practices Act (FCPA). In 2021, he completed FIDIC Certified CourseModule 2: Claims and Disputes Resolution.

Prior to entering the legal profession, Denis was a projectengineer at a major New Jersey government agency, where he managed numerousprojects through design to procurement and construction. Denis is an AdjunctAssociate Professor at Columbia University in the Department of CivilEngineering and Engineering Mechanics where he teaches a course in Preventionand Resolution of Construction Disputes. Previously, Denis was an AdjunctProfessor at the New Jersey Institute of Technology, where he taught a courseon the legal aspects of various types of construction contracts andspecifications.

Denis has been named to the New York-Metro Super Lawyers listfrom 2019 to 2023, the New York- Metro Super Lawyers Rising Stars list from2011 to 2018, the New Jersey Super Lawyers Rising Stars list from 2008 to 2018and the New Jersey Super Lawyers list from 2021 to 2024. He was recognized in2023 and 2024 by Best Lawyers. He is also recognized as a Future Leader by Who’sWho Legal and selected as one of Legal 500’s 2022 “Recommended Lawyers”, a 2016“Top Construction Lawyer” and one of the “New York Top-Rated Lawyers” in 2019by ALM & Martindale-Hubbell.

Richard Volack is a partner in the Construction Law practice atPeckar & Abramson and Chair of the firm’s Cyber Security & Data Privacypractice. He counsels some of the country’s largest general contractors, constructionmanagers, and owners in all aspects of construction dispute resolution,including claims involving breach of contract, construction defects, designdefects, schedule-and-impact delays, mechanic’s liens, surety bonds andinsurance, and counsels clients in all matters concerning cybersecurity anddata privacy.

Richard’s practice encompasses dispute resolution throughmediation, arbitration and, when necessary, litigation. He also counselsclients on litigation avoidance practices, risk management, project planning andcontract negotiation in relation to construction projects, both in bothdomestic and international settings. In 2021, Richard completed FIDIC CertifiedCourse Module 2: Claims and Disputes Resolution.

He is a frequent lecturer on construction insurance, riskmanagement, the New York Mechanic’s Lien Law, e-discovery and electronicallystored information (ESI) issues as they relate to construction litigation. Richardis admitted to practice in the States of New York and Connecticut. He is thepast chairman and past secretary of the Construction Law Committee of the NewYork City Bar Association and a member of the Construction Law section of theAmerican Bar Association.

He received his bachelor of science from the University ofScranton, a master of arts degree from the Maxwell School of Citizenship andPublic Policy at Syracuse University and his law degree from Syracuse UniversityCollege of Law, where he served as the business editor for the Journal ofInternational Law where he served as the business editor for the Journal ofInternational Law and Commerce.