Henry G. (Chip) Bachara, Jr.
Top rated Construction Litigation attorney in Jacksonville, Florida
Bachara Construction Law
Practice Areas: Construction Litigation; view more
Licensed in Florida since: 1987
Education: Mercer University Walter F. George School of Law
Selected to Super Lawyers: 2006 - 2023 Call today:
904-562-1060
Bachara Construction Law
One Independent DriveSuite 1800
Jacksonville, FL 32202 Visit website
Details
Attorney Henry G. (Chip) Bachara is the managing partner of Bachara Construction Law Group in Jacksonville, Florida, where he focuses his practice on construction law. In his more than 30 years as a lawyer, he has worked on all types of construction law cases, including those involving administrative complaints, bid protests, bond claims, catastrophic accidents, contract disputes, defect claims, delays, insurance coverage disputes, lien claims, licensing complaints and liquidated damages. He serves clients in the Jacksonville metropolitan area and throughout Florida.
The recipient of numerous awards and honors, Mr. Bachara holds an AV Preeminent* peer review rating from Martindale-Hubbell, the highest possible rating from the service. Florida Trend magazine listed him on its “legal elite” list during multiple years and the Jacksonville Business Journal named him an “ultimate attorney” in 2016. “The Best Lawyers in America” listed him in its publication several years in a row and named him “Jacksonville construction lawyer of the year” in 2012, 2017 and 2019.
Mr. Bachara belongs to the Jacksonville Bar Association, the American Bar Association, Associated Builders and Contractors of Florida First Coast and the St. John’s Cathedral properties committee. He is active in the Florida Bar, serving on the construction law committee and in the real property, probate and trust law sections.
Mr. Bachara received a bachelor’s degree in building construction from the University of Florida and earned his law degree from Mercer University School of Law. He holds a construction law certification from the Florida Bar and a license to practice law before all Florida state courts, the U.S. district courts for the northern and middle districts of Florida and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit.
*AV®, AV Preeminent®, Martindale-Hubbell Distinguished and Martindale-Hubbell Notable are certification marks used under license in accordance with the Martindale-Hubbell certification procedures, standards and policies. Martindale-Hubbell® is the facilitator of a peer review rating process. Ratings reflect the anonymous opinions of members of the bar and the judiciary. Martindale-Hubbell® Peer Review Rating™ fall into two categories – legal ability and general ethical standards.
Practice areas
Construction Litigation: BusinessFocus areas
Construction Defects
- 100% Construction Litigation: Business
First Admitted: 1987, Florida
Professional Webpage: https://bacharagroup.com/chip-bachara/
- Oceanfront Resort Owner Represented an oceanfront resort owner against a contractor for the defective installation of concrete roof tiles. Following two days of hearings, the arbitrator determined that the roof was incorrectly installed and the contractor was responsible for $2.18 million in damages. For a link to the arbitrator’s award, click here.
- Road Contractor Bid Defended the apparent lowest bid of a road contractor for approximately $12.5 million worth of road construction and repairs. The disappointed second-lowest bidder filed a protest asserting that the calculation of the bids was “incorrectly analyzed” and if analyzed “correctly,” would have resulted in the contract being awarded to them. Following public hearings before a hearing officer and the county commission, our client was awarded the project despite vigorous opposition and significant efforts by the second-lowest bidder to sway votes in its favor through political influence.
- Contractor’s DOT Bid Protest Successfully resolved a contractor’s bid protest involving a Department of Transportation environmental services contract brought in the Florida Division of Administrative Hearings.
- Healthcare Facility Conflict Resolution Successfully resolved a design professional’s claim related to the design of a fire retardant system in a health care facility, as well as related delay claims brought by the contractor.
- State University Conflict Resolution Successfully resolved a state university’s claims against a general contractor, surety and architecture firm for construction and design defects related to design and construction of a building envelope system.
- Environmental & Infrastructure Contractor Defense Defended a nationally-recognized environmental and infrastructure contractor in a construction defect claim involving a complicated drainage system installed at an environmental waste disposal site.
- Design/Build Contractor Defense Defended a design/build contractor against claims by a hospital that their HVAC system was under-designed. Following a three-week bench trial, the federal court determined that the contractor had in fact provided an adequate and proper design, and had neither breached the contract nor fallen below the standard of care for engineering design. For a link to the final judgment, click here.
- JAXPORT Paving Dispute In 2016, BCLG settled a high-profile dispute on behalf of the Jacksonville Port Authority (JAXPORT) over defective pavement design at the Dames Point Marine Terminal, negotiating a $10.25M settlement from a contractor and two engineering firms after nearly two and a half years of litigation. Prior to settlement of the case, the Bachara-led legal team conducted more than 100 days of depositions, analyzed more than 1.2 million documents and prepared 2,300 exhibits for trial. Due to the technical complexity of the subject matter, experts for the case were retained from as far away as the U.K., and the mediator who assisted with the settlement was from San Francisco. As a result of BCLG’s efforts, JAXPORT recovered a significant portion of its damage and avoided the heavy expense of a long and complicated trial. The Bachara Group took over as lead trial counsel for the suit at the request of the City of Jacksonville’s Office of General Counsel in March 2013. For further details, click here., 2016
- Complex Construction Dispute Jury Trial In St. Johns County, Florida, a BCLG trial team successfully represented a contractor client in court in a complex construction dispute in 2019. After a three-day trial and three hours of deliberations, the jury returned favorable verdicts on each of the 22 counts presented. Defeating all claims against a contractor and recovering all claims and amounts sought by the contractor against the owner is rare, and our team’s extensive knowledge of construction law and careful attention to the facts, combined with extensive research and jury selection expertise, paid off., 2019
- Demolition Bid Protest for Courthouse BCLG successfully represented Environmental Holdings Group (EHG) in a 2018 bid protest hearing regarding a contract for the asbestos and mold abatement, demolition, and implosion of the old Duval County Courthouse and City Hall Annex. EHG’s award for the $8M contract was challenged by the second-lowest bidder, which raised some challenging arguments. Following a lengthy hearing before the panel, we were able to defeat each argument and the panel voted unanimously in favor of our client being awarded the bid., 2018
- University of Florida, Bachelor of Building Construction, December 1982
- Harvard University, Program on Negotiation, 2014
- St. Johns Cathedral Properties Committee
- JaxChamber Trustee
- Leadership Jacksonville (Class of 2018)
- Associated Builders & Contractors, Florida First Coast Chapter
- American Bar Association, Member Forum, Committee on the Construction Industry
- Jacksonville Bar Association
- The Florida Bar, Real Property, Probate & Trust Law Section, Construction Law Committee Member
- The Florida Bar, 1987
- U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida
- U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida
- Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals
- Florida Super Lawyers 2006-2019
- Florida Legal Elite” 2010, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2019, Florida Trend Magazine
- Best Lawyers in America 2009-2012; 2014-2020
- Jacksonville Construction Lawyer of the Year, 2012, 2017 & 2019, Best Lawyers in America®
- “Ultimate Attorney” 2016 (Inaugural Class), Jacksonville Business Journal
- Martindale-Hubbell Client Champion Silver Award 2018
- Fourth Judicial Circuit Judicial Nominating Commission, Appointed 2011, Chair 2012, Reappointed 2014 & 2018
- Selection of the top 1% of lawyers in their respective areas of practice, determined by peer review, The Best Lawyers in America, Woodward White , 2010
- AV Preeminent rated by Martindale-Hubbell
- Florida Certified General Contractor (status: Inactive), 1983
- Florida Bar Board Certified in Construction Law, 2005
Office location for Henry G. (Chip) Bachara, Jr.
One Independent Drive
Suite 1800
Jacksonville, FL 32202
Phone: 904-562-1060
Selections
- Super Lawyers: 2006 - 2023
Top Lists
Top 25: Jacksonville Super Lawyers: 2021 - 2023Certificates and credentials
Construction Law
