PETE’S primary focus is construction, energy and complex contract law. He serves as chair of the firm’s Construction group and heads up its Construction Litigation practice as well as the import/export practice of the International group. He is also co-chair of both the Energy Industry Team and the Probate Litigation practice. In addition, Pete advises and guides clients on matters of federal government contract; customs and agency regulation; international law; and business, corporate and commercial litigation and arbitration.
Pete offers analysis with respect to dispute resolution of matters of domestic and international commercial contracts, distributorship agreements, construction issues and government contracts. Recently, he represented a contractor with regard to renovations of the United States Supreme Court building.
He also counsels international and domestic clients regarding U.S. Customs port of entry and compliance programs. Pete negotiates and facilitates federal lease agreements, commercial and construction contract claims and disputes, and federal agency regulatory issues. He advises publicly-traded and closely-held corporations on federal quality and ISO 9000 requirements as well as federal agency regulations.
Pete is a LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Accredited Professional and counsels clients in achieving LEED building certification. He is a member of the American Arbitration Association’s Blue Ribbon Panel of Arbitration and frequently serves as an arbitrator or mediator in construction, commercial and international disputes. Pete frequently serves as sole arbitrator or mediator in multi-million dollar domestic and international disputes between engineering firms and between contractors on construction, infrastructure, and oil and gas projects. He is also the inaugural Chairperson of the Lex Mundi Construction and Infrastructure Practice Group. He serves as a trustee for the Bay Village Foundation and is an active member of the American Bar Association’s Public Contract Law Section. He is also a member of the International Bar Association, National Contract Management Association, Massachusetts Bar Association, the Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association, North Coast Building Industry Association and the Avon Lake Renewable Energy Task Force. For several consecutive years, Pete has been listed as one of America’s Leading Lawyers in Chambers USA for Construction law.
He is an adjunct professor at Case Western Reserve University and a frequent lecturer at professional and legal seminars. He has spoken in such arenas as the Construction Superconference, International Energy Conference on developing, constructing, operating and securing international energy/power projects, Airport Counsels Institute, Hill International, Ohio Mechanical Contractors’ Association, Cleveland State University’s Executive MBA Program, International Bar Association, American Arbitration Association and Price, Waterhouse & Cooper, Inc.
A published author, Pete has been featured in Builders Exchange, Insights magazine of Willamette Management Associates and Willamette Capital, Contract Management, Dispute Resolution Journal, Cities and Villages Magazine, Columbus Business First and the magazine of the Ohio Municipal League.
Pete served as a prosecutor in the U.S. Army, continuing his distinguished military service there as a Department of Defense contract litigation attorney. He joined Calfee in 1990 and became a partner in 1993.