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Ryan Hiss is a construction lawyer and a partner in Lyman & Nielsen. Throughout his career he has concentrated his practice in assisting those involved in construction projects with protecting their legal rights and resolving their legal disputes as efficiently and effectively as possible. Mr. Hiss has advocated the rights of contractors, suppliers, architects, engineers, owners and developers in various dispute forums, including state and federal court and before mediators and arbitrators. Prior to joining Lyman & Nielsen, Mr. Hiss was a partner with the construction law firm of Stein, Ray & Harris LLP. Mr. Hiss has been involved on numerous cases involving contract disputes, delay claims, construction defects, payment disputes and design malpractice. For example, Mr. Hiss successfully defended the architects and engineers who designed an NFL stadium against breach of contract and negligence claims that exceeded $70 million dollars, which were asserted by the owner of the stadium. Mr. Hiss also successfully advocated the rights of a national owner of apartments in a construction defect lawsuit concerning a 350 unit complex. The owner client was able to recover over $6.0 million dollars in damages from the general contractor and subcontractors who were responsible for the defective workmanship that caused water leaks and mold in the units. A couple of years ago, Mr. Hiss successfully defended a general contractor against claims brought by a developer for breach of contract, tortious interference of contract and slander resulting from a failed four phase development in downtown Chicago. The claims asserted against the general contractor exceeded $150 million. After motion practice and depositions, the developer dropped its entire claim against the general contractor.

Throughout his career, Mr. Hiss has represented contractors in their breach of contract disputes and with protecting their rights through the effective use of mechanics liens and bond claims. This experience includes advocating timely and efficient resolution of payment disputes during projects, at project close-out, or after the project has been completed. It is Mr. Hiss’ goal, as well as that of Lyman & Nielsen, to effectively advocate his clients’ rights and favorably resolve client disputes as efficiently as possible, so that the client can focus on the building process and not expend time or other resources attending to disputes.

Mr. Hiss received his Juris Doctorate degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Law (with Honors). Mr. Hiss served on the North Carolina Law Review in 1993-94 at UNC. Mr. Hiss received his Bachelor of Arts degree from North Carolina State University, where he graduated Summa Cum Laude. Mr. Hiss also taught Public Speaking and Persuasion Theories as a visiting professor at North Carolina State University.

Areas of Practice:

 

Public and Private Construction Related Transactions and Litigation

Mechanics Lien Litigation

Surety Bond Litigation

Real Estate Litigation

Education:

 

University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill School of Law

Juris Doctorate

North Carolina State University

Bachelor of Science in Education and Social Policy

Professional Associations and Memberships:

 

American Bar Association Forum on the Construction Industry, Member 

Chicago Bar Association Mechanics Lien/Construction Committee and Commercial Litigation Committee, Member 

North Carolina Bar Association- Construction Law Section, Member

Important Considerations for your Subcontract, Strong Construction Contracts: Your Foundation for Payment; National Business Institute, February 26, 2007 (Oak Brook, Illinois)

Key Provisions in Subcontracts, The Fundamentals of Construction Contracts: Understanding the Issues in Illinois; Lorman Education Services, July 28, 2006 (Arlington Heights, Illinois)

LEED Green Building Rating System and Related Legislation in Illinois; Stein, Ray & Harris Design Symposium, April, 2006 (Chicago, Illinois).

Construction Defect Claims from the Contractor’s Perspective, Construction Defect Claims in Illinois; Lorman Education Services, February 16, 2006 (Chicago, Illinois)

LEED Green Building Rating System and Related Legislation in Illinois; Lorman Education Services, December 8, 2005 (Downers Grove, Illinois)

Here Comes the Judge, the Design Professional’s Responsibility as the Arbiter of Disputes; Stein, Ray & Harris Design Symposium, March 2002 (Chicago, Illinois).

Here Comes the Judge-Duties and Responsibilities of Design Professionals When Deciding Disputes by Steven G.M. Stein & Ryan A. Hiss, ASCE Journal of Professional Issues in Engineering Education and Practice, Vol. 129, Number 3 (July 2003).