Construction Litigation Lawyer Irvine, CA

Ghassemian Law Group has represented clients in construction disputes across Southern California since 1999. Our founding attorney, Mahyar Ghassemian, built the firm specifically to serve the construction industry and the companies that support it, working with contractors, developers, owners, and design professionals throughout Orange County and beyond.

Our Irvine, CA construction litigation lawyer handles payment disputes, mechanics liens, construction defect claims, bid protests, public works conflicts, and contractor license defense matters. We bring small firm values and big firm experience to every case, backed by more than 100 years of combined litigation experience across the firm. If you’re dealing with a construction dispute in Irvine, we invite you to schedule a free consultation.

Why Choose Ghassemian Law Group for Construction Litigation in Irvine, CA?

Construction cases combine three bodies of law (contract, licensing regulation, and mechanics lien statutes) that rarely intersect in other practice areas. The right lawyer is one who works across all three regularly.

A Practice Grounded in Construction Law

Mahyar Ghassemian has focused a significant part of her 26-year career on construction matters. She holds a Cum Laude law degree from Western State University College of Law and a master’s in physics with honors from Cal State Long Beach. That technical background fits construction litigation naturally, where disputes often turn on engineering reports, scheduling documents, change orders, and the kind of detailed factual record that determines both liability and damages. She engages with the technical material directly throughout the life of a case.

Results in High-Stakes Construction Disputes

Our construction litigation lawyer in Irvine has produced multi-million dollar results in matters ranging from public works disputes to private construction defect cases. Those outcomes include defending a general contractor against a city’s claims of delay and defective work that threatened a $3 million annual contract, recovering $800,000 for unpaid work under Business/Commercial Litigation and Contract Law, and defending an architectural firm in multi-party construction defect litigation in a manner that significantly reduced client exposure and shifted liability to other parties.

Representation Across Languages

Our attorneys are fluent in English, Persian, Turkish, French, and conversant in Spanish. Construction projects frequently involve parties, subcontractors, and witnesses whose primary language is not English, and direct communication with the client in their strongest language often clarifies important facts about the project timeline, the scope of work, and the sequence of events in dispute.

Active Engagement With the Construction Industry

Ms. Ghassemian volunteers with the Associated General Contractors, the Southern California Contractors Association, the National Association of Women Business Owners, and the Orange County Bar Association. Regular involvement in these organizations keeps the firm current on the regulatory, economic, and practical issues contractors face, and those relationships strengthen how we represent clients in construction matters.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “We have had a few construction litigation cases and Mahyar & Team demonstrate knowledge of construction law and they commit themselves to the successful end! I hope we do not have the need….but when the need arises…I will call Mahyar and ready for another success!” — KERRY EVERT

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Types of Construction Litigation Cases We Handle in Irvine

Construction litigation covers disputes that arise at every stage of a project, from bidding to closeout and beyond. Our practice handles matters for contractors, subcontractors, developers, owners, and design professionals, focusing on the following core areas:

• Payment Disputes and Collection. Getting paid is one of the most persistent challenges in the construction industry. We pursue claims for unpaid work, enforce mechanics lien stop notices, and handle bond claims when direct payment is blocked. We also defend owners and general contractors against improper or inflated payment demands.
• Mechanics Liens and Stop Notices. California’s mechanics lien system gives contractors and suppliers powerful remedies when payment is withheld, but the procedural requirements are strict and unforgiving. We handle lien recording, perfection, and foreclosure, along with defense against liens recorded improperly.
• Construction Defect Claims. Defect litigation often involves multiple parties, insurance carriers, and technical experts. We represent contractors, subcontractors, design professionals, and developers facing these claims, and we’ve handled multi-party cases where careful liability allocation shifted exposure onto the parties actually responsible.
• Contract Disputes. Construction contracts generate frequent litigation over scope, change orders, delays, and termination. We handle both prime contract and subcontract disputes, including matters involving verbal agreements, which remain common in the industry despite the risks they carry.
• Public Works and Bid Protests. Public projects operate under a separate framework of laws governing bidding, contracting, prevailing wages, and payment. We handle public contracts disputes, bid protests, and false claims defenses for contractors working on state and local projects.
• Contractor License Defense. Disputes with the Contractors State License Board can threaten a contractor’s ability to operate. We defend licensees against complaints, accusations, and disciplinary actions, working to preserve both the license and the business.
• Surety Bond and Insurance Claims. Performance and payment bonds create rights and obligations that often become central to construction disputes. We pursue and defend bond claims and handle disputes with sureties and their counsel.
• Delay and Disruption Claims. Schedule disputes produce some of the largest damage claims in construction litigation. Proving or defending delay requires scheduling analysis, documentation of the project record, and often expert testimony, all of which we manage throughout the case.

California Legal Requirements for Construction Litigation

California construction law combines statutory deadlines, licensing rules, and procedural requirements that catch contractors and project participants off guard when they aren’t followed carefully.

Mechanics lien rights are governed by the California Civil Code §§8000 et seq.. Claimants must serve preliminary notices, record liens within strict time limits after project completion or cessation, and file suit to foreclose within 90 days of recording. Missing any of these deadlines defeats the claim. Stop payment notices on private works and public projects carry their own timing and procedural requirements that differ from mechanics liens.

Contract limitations apply as well. Breach of a written construction contract must generally be filed within four years under Code of Civil Procedure §337, while oral contract claims carry a two-year deadline under Code of Civil Procedure §339. Construction defect claims are subject to the statute of limitations in Code of Civil Procedure §337.15, which imposes a 10-year outside limit on latent defect claims measured from substantial completion.

Licensed contractor requirements are enforced through the Contractors State License Board, and working without a required license can forfeit the contractor’s right to collect payment under Business and Professions Code §7031. The rule is strict and has cost contractors millions in recoverable compensation. Most construction disputes proceed in California Superior Court, though arbitration clauses are common in construction contracts and often direct disputes to private arbitration instead.

Important Aspects of an Irvine Construction Litigation Case

Clients who understand the moving parts of a construction case handle it better at every stage. The considerations below shape nearly every matter we handle.

Preserving the Project Record Immediately

Construction disputes depend on the written record of the project. Emails, daily reports, RFIs, submittals, change orders, meeting minutes, and photographs all become central evidence once a dispute takes shape. We work with clients to preserve the project file in its entirety from the moment a dispute appears, because gaps in the record are difficult to explain later and spoliation allegations can damage an otherwise strong case.

Protecting Lien and Bond Rights

Contractors and suppliers have powerful statutory remedies, but only if deadlines are met. Preliminary notices, lien recordings, stop notices, and bond claims each have their own timelines, and missing any step can extinguish significant financial rights. We handle these filings promptly and advise clients on timing from the earliest indication of a payment problem.

Managing License and Regulatory Exposure

Construction litigation frequently implicates licensing questions. Whether the contractor was properly licensed, whether subcontractors were required to be licensed, and whether work exceeded the scope of a specialty license all affect recovery and defense. These questions are sometimes dispositive under Business and Professions Code §7031, and they require attention at the start of any case.

Analyzing Insurance Coverage Early

Commercial general liability policies, builder’s risk coverage, errors and omissions policies for design professionals, and subcontractor additional insured endorsements may all apply to a construction dispute. We review available coverage at the outset and pursue defense and indemnity from carriers where appropriate. Insurance recovery often changes the economic picture of a case significantly.

Coordinating With Technical Experts

Most construction cases require expert testimony on issues such as scheduling, defect causation, standard of care, and damages. Selecting the right experts early, coordinating their analysis with the legal theory of the case, and preparing them for deposition and trial are all central parts of effective representation. Late or mismatched experts produce weaker cases.

Managing Multi-Party Dynamics

Construction litigation often involves owners, general contractors, multiple subcontractors, design professionals, sureties, and insurers. Each party has its own counsel, interests, and strategy, and the dynamic among them affects settlement and trial strategy. We manage these multi-party cases with attention to where liability actually belongs, not simply where the plaintiff has directed its claims.

Contact Ghassemian Law Group

Construction disputes affect project timelines, business relationships, and the financial health of the companies involved. Resolving them well requires counsel who understands construction as a business and as a legal practice area. Whether you’re a contractor, owner, subcontractor, or design professional facing a dispute in Irvine, we welcome the opportunity to discuss the situation with you in a free consultation. During that meeting, a senior attorney will review the facts, identify the relevant deadlines and legal issues, and explain the realistic paths forward. Contact us to put a focused construction litigation practice to work on your case.