Attorneys

(913) 232-8836
philip@woodworthlawkc.com

Contact:
Jerry Bales
Woodworth Snow, LLC
7200 W. 132nd Street, Suite 320
Overland Park, Kansas 66213
Phone: (913) 732-9025
Email: jerry@woodworthsnow.com


Note: Jerry’s services as a mediator, arbitrator or special master are provided by Bales
ADR Services, LLC (not by Woodworth Snow, LLC). For that purpose, he may be
contacted at:


Jerry Bales
Email: Jerry@balesadr.com
Phone: (913) 638-6556

 

Bar & Court Admissions

Kansas, 1974
Missouri, 1987
Supreme Court of the United States
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas
U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri

 

Education

  • University of Missouri – Kansas City, J.D. 1974, With Distinction
  • Rockhurst College, B.S. 1971

Experience

Jerry has over 48 years of experience handling commercial litigation and construction
claims, litigation, risk management, and contract drafting/negotiation. Jerry also has
extensive experience with personal injury, wrongful death, product liability, premises liability,
insurance coverage, arson and fraud. He frequently serves as a mediator or arbitrator in
commercial, construction, insurance, and other disputes. He has tried more than 100 cases
(jury trial, bench trial, and arbitration) and participated in hundreds of mediations and
settlement conferences. In the construction industry, Jerry has represented design
professionals, owners, contractors, sureties, and suppliers and has handled virtually every
type of claim arising from a commercial project, e.g., defects in all design disciplines, delay
and impact, job site safety, wrongful termination, liquidated damages, cardinal change,
differing site conditions, and other contract disputes. Professionally trained in online
mediation using Zoom.

 

Areas of Practice

  • Construction
  • Mediation & Arbitration Neutrals
  • Litigation

Activities and Memberships

  • American Bar Association, Construction Industry Forum (former member of Division Steering Committee)
  • The Missouri Bar, Construction Law Committee
  • Kansas Bar Association, Construction Law Committee
  • Johnson County, Kansas, Bar Association (former Director and Treasurer)
  • Johnson County Bar Foundation (former trustee)
  • Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association, Construction Law Committee (former Chair)
  • Midwest Innocence Project (volunteer attorney)

Honors and Recognition

  • Selected among The Best Lawyers in America®, 2008-2024
  • Selected multiple times (most recent 2024) by The Best Lawyers in America® as Lawyer of the Year – Construction Law, Arbitration, Mediation
  • Selected for Missouri/Kansas Super Lawyers (Construction/Alternative Dispute Resolution), 2008-2024
  • Construction Arbitrator Master Panel of AAA (top 100 in the country)
  • AAA Master Mediation Panel
  • National Academy of Distinguished Neutrals
  • Received highest attorney rating from Martindale-Hubbell – AV Preeminent Rating

Publications

  • Co-Author, State-By-State Guide to Design and Construction Contracts and Claims, Second Edition, Aspen Publishers, 2013 (Kansas Law Chapter)
  • Co-Author, 2014, 2015 and 2016 Cumulative Supplements (Kansas Law Chapter), State-By-State Guide to Design and Construction Contracts and Claims, Second Edition, Aspen Publishers, 2013
  • Co-Author, 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012 Cumulative Supplements (Kansas Law Chapter), State-By-State Guide to Construction Contracts and Claims, Aspen Publishers (2008)
  • Co-Author, ConsensusDOCS 240: What You Don’t Know Can Hurt You, 30 The Construction Lawyer 21, 2010
  • Co-editor, Design Professional and Construction Manager Law, ABA Construction Forum, 2007
  • Jerome V. Bales, Shamus O’Meara, and Mark Azman, The “Betterment” or Added Benefit Defense, 26 The Construction Lawyer 14, 2006
  • Author, Construction Litigation’s Tangled Web: A Case Study: Dillard v. Shaugnessy, The Critical Path, Defense Research Institute Construction Law Committee, 1997

Presentations

    • Construction Contracts and Various Risk Management Issues (i.e. documentation, emails, dispute resolution), numerous to date for construction clients
    • Mediation and Arbitration Practice Pointers, Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association, 2018
    • Risk Management – Self Performed Remediation by Design Professionals, DPRCG Convocation, Orlando, Florida, 2017
    • Arbitration Issues from the Neutral’s Perspective, Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association, October 2011
    • Hey, Who’s in Charge Here? The ConsensusDOCS Owner-Architect Agreement, American Bar Association, September 2008
    • 2007 AIA Contract Documents, Lorman Education Services, January 2008
    • Do Mechanical/Electrical Engineers Need to Worry About Risk Management? (Sustainability, BIM, Commissioning, and Electronic Discovery), ACEC Annual Meeting, May 2007
    • Design-Build Construction Law, Turner Construction Co., February 2007
    • Fundamentals in Construction Law, American Bar Association, November 2006
    • Betterment or Added Value – The Defense with an Identity Crisis, 45th Annual Meeting of Invited Attorneys, Victor O. Schinnerer & Company, Inc., Savannah, Georgia 2006
    • The Betterment or Added First Benefit Defense, ABA Construction Forum Meeting, New Orleans, Louisiana 2005
    • Mold-What’s the Big Deal? Joint Meeting, American Institute of Architects, Association of General Contractors, and Kansas Consulting Engineers 2003
    • A Road Map to the Standard of Care, 41st Annual Meeting of Invited Attorneys, Victor O. Schinnerer & Company, Inc., Asheville, North Carolina 2002
    • What Do You Do When Conditions of the Job Change, National Business Institute Seminar 2000
    • Conflict Management and Dispute Resolution Procedures, Construction Specifications Institute, Kansas City Chapter 2000
    • Liability of Design Professionals, The Missouri Bar Annual Meeting 1995

Arbitration/Mediation Experience as a Neutral

  • AAA Master Mediation Panel (selected by rating committee of advocates and in-house counsel representing clients in complex, high-stakes disputes)
  • Arbitration Panels:
    • American Arbitration Association
    • Construction Arbitrator Master Panel of AAA (top 100 in the country)
    • Commercial Arbitration Panel
    • Consumer Arbitration Panel
    • National Association of Distinguished Neutrals
    • AAA Rule R-7 Arbitrator
  • Arbitration Training:
    • Annual AAA Continuing Education Courses, 2005 to present
    • American Bar Association Section of Dispute Resolutions 16th Annual Spring Conference (Managing a Successful Arbitration – Getting to Arbitration; Ethics for Arbitrators; Managing the Complex Business Case in ADR; Best Practices for the Multi-Arbitration Panel; Discovery in Arbitration; Managing a Successful Arbitration-Ethical Issues in Arbitrations; The Arbitration Hearing) Miami, 2014
    • Arbitrating the Mega-Case, American Bar Association, Los Angles, California 2008
    • Chairing an Arbitration Panel: Managing Procedures, Process & Dynamics, AAA, 2005
    • Arbitration Awards: Safeguarding, Deciding & Writing Awards, AAA, 2004
    • Ethics in ADR, AAA, 2003
    • Construction Industry Arbitrator II Training, AAA, Orlando, Florida, 2002
    • Annual Arbitrator Update, AAA, 2002
    • Construction Industry Arbitrator Training, AAA, Kansas City, Missouri, 1997
  • Sample Cases as Arbitrator:
    • $80 million-dollar dispute between owner, general contractor, and pass-through claims of multiple subcontractors, involving high-rise luxury condominium project (Chair of three-member panel; 98 days of hearing)
    • Served as umpire in appraisal process involving roofing dispute between insurance carrier and insured-owner
    • Multi-million dollar dispute between municipal utility, contractor and supplier involving performance issues with baghouse, man-safe dampers, ash conveyance system and ID fan in power plant (three-member panel)
    • Dispute between industrial producer of bio-diesel fuel and supplier of 1.5 million-gallon bolted-steel tank, used for storage of UAN fertilizer solution and soybean oil (sole arbitrator)
    • Served as Hearing Officer relating to employment termination of Fire Captain and made findings and recommendations to employer’s Board of Directors
    • Multi-million-dollar dispute between developer and contractor involving construction of golf course (Chair of three-member panel)
    • Claim by pension fund of labor union against company for withdrawal liability under Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1975 (ERISA), as amended by the Multiemployer Pension Plan Amendments Act of 1980 (MPPAA)
    • Claim for actual and punitive damages by purchaser of apartment complex against seller and real estate broker for misrepresentation and fraud as to financial condition of the property
    • Claim for damages relating to UCC rejection of defective 1.5 million-gallon bolted-steel tank used to store UAN fertilizer solution and soybean oil
    • Claim for damages relating to numerous defective interactive exhibits manufactured for and supplied to museum
    • Multi-million-dollar dispute between county-owner and contractor involving delays in completion of arena and exhibition hall (Chair of three-member panel)
    • Multi-million dollar claim involving errors in structural design and fabrication of roller coaster for major theme park (three-member international panel)
    • $3 million claim for damages by owner and developer of golf course, and counterclaim by contractor for specific performance of $2.2 million mortgage (Chair of three-member panel)
    • Multi-million-dollar delay claim by owner against construction manager, and counterclaim for unpaid construction management and contractor fees (sole arbitrator)
    • Dispute between general contractor and subcontractor on fast-track project concerning termination of subcontractor, damages for completion and correction of work, etc. (three-member panel)
    • Dispute between contractor and private owner as to enforceability and validity of liquidated damages and related claims (sole arbitrator)
    • Residential dispute involving failure of deck to comply with building code (sole arbitrator)
    • Dispute between owner of project and general contractor involving claims of fraud in the inducement, delays, damage to owner’s property, wrongful termination, incomplete and defective work (three-member panel; 31 days of hearing)
    • Dispute between owner of project and EPC Contractor relating to natural gas liquid gathering and processing plant, and claims of delay, inefficiencies, incomplete work, wrongful termination, and numerous disputed change order requests
    • Dispute between utility and contractor relating to design, construction, and maintenance of 13 arsenic and nitrate water treatment facilities and issues of UCC warranties, statutes of limitations, etc. (three-member panel)
    • Numerous cases serving as AAA Rule R-7 Arbitrator (joinder and consolidation)
  • Mediation Panels:
    • American Arbitration Association Master Mediation Panel
    • United States District Court, Western District of Missouri
    • National Association of Distinguished Neutrals
  • Mediation Training:
    • American Bar Association Section of Dispute Resolution 16th Annual Spring Conference (After the Middle Hours – Getting to Settlement), Miami, 2014
    • Construction Mediator Training (2 days), AAA, Chicago, Illinois, 1997
    • Various continuing education seminars on mediation
    • Professionally trained in online mediation using Zoom
  • Sample Cases as Mediator:
    • Claim by public university for numerous design and construction defects relating to residence hall project (15 parties)
    • Wrongful employment discharge and retaliation claim
    • Claim by public owner for errors and omissions represented by more than 300 change order items
    • Multi-party dispute between municipality and various contractors regarding construction defects and unpaid contract balances (three days);$9.2 million dispute (8 parties) involving claims arising from destruction of project by arsonist, including builder’s risk coverage, broker liability, and negligence of contractors
    • Dispute between general and subcontractor regarding work on electrostatic precipitator in power plant, termination of the subcontractor, and multi-million-dollar counterclaim by subcontractor for loss of credit and bonding capacity
    • Multi-million-dollar claim by housing authority against program manager regarding job order contract program
    • Sexual harassment and hostile work environment claim (Missouri Human Rights Act);
    • Violation of non-complete agreement
    • Design and construction issues relating to Corps of Engineers Project (seismic soil classification)
    • Dissolution of professional service firm
    • Residential claim for $400,000 in damages caused by defective workmanship
    • Property insurance claim against first-party insurer for hail damage to roof on commercial building
    • Claim against engineer by worker who was severely injured in trench collapse
    • Accounting malpractice claim relating to erroneous tax returns, resulting from use of stepped-up basis for assets acquired in merger
    • Claim against municipality for breach of development agreement (CID) and improper allocation of interest
    • Claim of defective design and construction of storm water drainage infrastructure for transportation and holding facility
    • Claim by umbrella carrier against primary insurer for negligence, bad faith, and breach of duty to defend (conflict of interest due to worker’s compensation subrogation interest and failure to separate the files)
    • Equitable subrogation claim by payment bond surety for progress payments and retainage and issue of effective date of surety’s lien rights

Jerome V. Bales