After working with Home Builders and Remodelers for years, I was asked to join the Board of the HBA of Greater Cleveland and act as their Legal Counsel. It is an honor to be able to help the HBA better serve their membership in the many legal issues that face them when dealing with residential consumers including the Ohio Consumer Sales Practices Act, the Home Construction Service Suppliers Act, the Home Solicitation Sales Act, the Ohio Mechanic's Lien Law and the many other Ohio laws that effect them on a daily basis.

I help subcontractors and suppliers get paid on time and in full by helping them bid and negotiate fair contracts, serve their Notices of Furnishing, complete the proper paperwork during the job, gain proper change orders, avoid Killer Lien Waivers, and then if they still aren't paid in full, file their mechanic's liens and bond claims, If they STILL aren't paid, we try to collect their money while keeping their costs as low as possible with negotiation and mediation before we have to file an arbitration of lawsuit.I began O'Rourke & Associates as "Construction Lawyers / Mechanic's Lien Lawyers in a small firm, with large firm experience." In 2013 I merged my practice into Meyers, Roman, Friedberg & Lewis and am the Chair of its Construction Law Group. We represent construction contractors, subcontractors and suppliers with the expertise of a large firm construction law department, without all of the large firm fees. Personally, I focus my practice on representing subcontractors and suppliers in the construction industry. We provide service from start to finish, preparing the bid, negotiating the contract, serving the Notice of Furnishing, negotiating and documenting Change Orders, Preparing Pay Applications and Lien Waivers, filing Mechanic'e Liens, collecting the money due for the work performed. Through American Subcontractors Association we also work to level the playing field through our Legislative efforts to make good laws.and the Subcontractors Legal Defense Fund to assure that state laws are fairly interpreted. I am currently a member if the ASA National Board of Directors, the Board of Directors of ASA of Ohio, and am a Past President of ASA of Ohio. I have been the sole provider of the Builders Exchange Notice of Furnishing, Mechanic's Lien, and Bond Claim service since 1987 and am its General Counsel, a former member of its Board of Directors and now a Past President.

After years of working with the Builders Exchange, advising them as General Counsel, providing Construction Law Seminars and Workshops, the Builders Exchange members with low cost, flat rate Notice of Furnishing, Mechanic's Lien, and Bond Claim Service, and writing the Subcontractors Corner Column in the Builders Exchange Magazine, I am honored to serve on the BX Board as its President.

I have been re-elected to the National Board of the American Subcontractors Association, the only trade association that represents only construction subcontractors and suppliers.I have previously served 8 years on the Board and am the Chair of ASA's Subcontractors Legal Defense Fund, a task force charged with identifying court of appeals cases that are important to construction subcontractors and suppliers, then funding Amicus (friend of the Court) briefs to help make good law or keep existing good laws from being changed for the worse.

I team teach Mediation, a great, intersession course offering hands-on experience in mediation using mock mediation exercises in broad range of legal disciplines, Construction, Personal Injury, Domestic Relations, Neighborhood Disputes, Will Contests and Consumer Law Issues, showing how this Alternative Dispute Resolution Process is an effective settlement tool in virtually every area of practice.The course is 2 hours of Pass/Fail Credit completed in 1 week, between both the fall and winter semester and the Winter and Summer semester.

www.ConstructionCreditNews.com is a fully electronic credit reporter for contractors, subcontractors and suppliers in the construction industry. We report on new mechanic's liens and construction lawsuits filed in the most active counties in Ohio.A new report is published every week and members can view historical data to more fully understand a prospective customer's payment history before the decide to bid or sell on credit.

I was the first attorney elected to the Board of ASA National and have served as a member of ASA's Executive Committee. As the Chair of the SLDF I work with other industry professionals from across the country to further the position of subcontractors and suppliers to the construction industry identifying appellate level construction law cases then fund Amicus briefs to help keep good laws in place or change laws that treat subcontractors and suppliers unfairly. If you know of new case that may be of interest to the SLDF and there is still time to write a brief, please contact me immediately.

ASA of Ohio is a chapter of American Subcontractors Association. ASA is the only trade association representing the interests of subcontractors and suppliers to the construction industry, is a founding member of the consortium responsible for the production of the ConsensusDOCS family of construction documents; sponsors ASA Attorneys' Council responsible for the production of construction contract addenda to neutralize unfair construction contracts; sponsors the Subcontractors Legal Defense Fund to fund Amicus Curiae (Friend of the Court) Briefs supporting subcontractors' rights in important appellate cases.I regularly speak on Legal Topics of Mechanic's Liens, Notices of Furnishing, Bond Claims, Contract Negotiation and Creditors' RIghts / Bankruptcy.ASA of Ohio has local councils in Cleveland, Columbus and Cincinnati. Our current legislative effort is Retainage Reform.

I am the Author of the legal treatise, Ohio Mechanic's and Materialmens' Liens, 3d Edition. I am currently making the revisions for the 4th edition.This is the only legal treatise in Ohio that is devoted solely to explaining topic of Mechanic's Liens.

Construction Lawyers / Mechanic's Lien Lawyers in a small firm, with large firm experience. We provide our clients the best of each. We represent construction contractors, subcontractor and suppliers with the expertise of a large firm construction law department, without all of the large firm fees.I represent subcontractors and supplers in the construction industry. We provide service from start to finish, preparing the bid, negotiating the contract, serving the Notice of Furnishing, negotiating and documenting Change Orders, Preparing Pay Applications and Lien Waivers, filing Mechanic'e Liens, collecting the money due for the work performed.Through American Subcontractors Association we also work to level the playing field through our Legislative efforts to make good laws.and the Subcontractors Legal Defense Fund to assure that state laws are fairly interpreted.Sole provider of the Builders Exchange Notice of Furnishing, Mechanic's Lien, and Bond Claim service since 1987.

I was the first attorney to ever sit on the Board of ASA National. I was appointed to fill an unexpired term of another member, then reelected for the maximum of two terms.ASA is the only trade association that is an advocate (legislative, judicial and business) working solely for subcontractors and suppliers to the construction industry.I currently chair the Subcontractors' Legal Defense Fund, an ASA task force whose mission is the judicial advocacy of the position of subcontractors which is fulfilled by acting as Amicus in important appellate level cases throughout the nation.

I was a member of Midday Toastmasters for several years and President of the Club. I won the Bull Slinger of the Year Award for winning the most Table Topics throughout the year.

I worked in Real Estate, Banking and Construction Law. I first started my Mechanic's Lien and Bond Claim Service for the Builders Exchange while I was an employee here.

I prepared and negotiated commercial mortgages for loans in excess of $20,000,000 dealing with all aspects of the mortgage and title issues, including Mechanic's Liens and other clouds in title.I also defended workers compensation cases from the employers' side.

I started as a :Law Clerk in the Legal Department, then was promoted to the Stores Real Estate division assisting Real Estate Representatives in negotiating commercial leases and peoperty purchases.It is here that I got my first exposure to mechanic's liens.