Charles Vigil

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Leaders in Law endorses Charles Vigil as our exclusively recommended Construction Litigation Law expert in the USA – New Mexico. If you wish to get in touch with Charles, please use the contact information provided above.

Education

University of Michigan Law School (J.D., 1989)

University of New Mexico (B.B.A., 1986)

Professional Experience

Mr. Vigil is the President and Managing Director of the firm. He is a past President of the State Bar of New Mexico. Mr. Vigil practices in the Litigation Department in the areas of labor and employment law, commercial litigation, products liability and professional liability.  He has jury and non-jury trial experience in both the state and federal courts.

In March of 2013, the University of Michigan Law School presented Mr. Vigil with the J.T. Canales Distinguished Alumni Award.  The J.T. Canales Award honors an University of Michigan Law School alum who has made a significant contribution to empowering the Latino community and who serves as a role model for the next generation of Latino lawyers and leaders.

In July of 2007, Mr. Vigil received the Distinguished Bar Service Award from the State Bar of New Mexico.  The award was presented to Mr. Vigil in recognition of his long and valuable service to the State Bar over a significant period of time and for his long-term commitment to State Bar services and his significant contributions to the legal profession.

Professional Memberships and Activities

Past President, Board of Bar Commissioners, State Bar of New Mexico (2005)

Member, New Mexico Board of Bar Commissioners (1999-2006)

Co-Chair, New Mexico Commission on Professionalism (2005)

Chair and member of New Mexico Client Protection Fund Commission (2006, 2010)

Member, New Mexico Commission on Racial and Ethnic Diversity

Member, New Mexico Hispanic Bar Association

Board of Directors, New Mexico Hispanic Bar Association (2011-2013)

Member, Executive Council, National Conference of Bar Presidents (2005-2008) and Chair of Diversity Committee (2007-2008)

American Bar Association (Labor Law Section)

American Bar Association – Standing Committee on Lawyers’ Professional Liability  (2005-2008 and 2011-2014)

State Bar of New Mexico Delegate to American Bar Association House of Delegates (2006-present)

Albuquerque Bar Association

H. Vearle Payne American Inn of Court (1999-2002)

Listed in The Best Lawyers in America for his experience and expertise in commercial litigation, product liability litigation-defendants and professional malpractice law

Named Albuquerque Professional Malpractice Law-Defendants Lawyer of the Year-2015 by Best Lawyers in America

Listed in Chambers & Partners-America’s Leading Lawyers for Business for his experience and expertise in labor and employment law

Listed in Southwest Super Lawyers for his expertise and experience in employment and labor law

New Mexico Business Weekly’s Best of the Bar – 2009

Has achieved highest Martindale-Hubbell rating

FIRM DESCRIPTION

Our History:

Nearly three decades before New Mexico achieved statehood, Bernard Shandon Rodey stepped off a train from Boston onto the hot and dusty streets of his destination: Albuquerque, New Mexico. Mr. Rodey established his law practice in 1883. Little did he know he was on his way to creating what would become one of New Mexico’s oldest, largest and most highly respected firms. The law practice Mr. Rodey began in 1883 has grown into a firm of more than 70 lawyers and over 70 support professionals, with offices in Albuquerque and Santa Fe. The journey from that first day to the 21st century is filled with stories of leadership, technical excellence, and effective client advocacy.

Rodey Today: 

Being a good lawyer means different things to different people. Some would say it is being well educated, experienced, and tough in the courtroom. Others would describe a creative, client-oriented problem solver. At the Rodey Law Firm, we believe a good lawyer is all these things and more.

Good lawyers help their clients make wise choices. They cut through the complexities of a problem to find its core. They study that problem from different angles, turn it on its head, and ask “what if?” Then they focus their intellectual, legal and strategic skills on finding a solution efficiently and economically. Ultimately, good lawyers make a difference in the lives of their clients.

This approach is a long-established practice at the Rodey Law Firm. We think it is the essence of what makes us good at what we do.

Professional Recognition:

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Our excellence, expertise and experience are recognized by the organizations of which we are members.

Drawing its members from the best law firms throughout the world, Lex Mundi, an international consortium of independent law firms, invited Rodey to join in 1989. As a charter member and the only New Mexico member, we have enjoyed an uninterrupted association with this highly esteemed organization.

The Harmonie Group is a North American network of independent law firms offering expertise in serving insurance companies, risk retention groups, self insureds and insureds. The Rodey Law Firm, New Mexico’s member, has been a part of the Harmonie Group since 1995.

The outstanding quality of Rodey attorneys is recognized by professional organizations including the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel, the American College of Mortgage Attorneys, the American College of Trial Lawyers, the American College of Real Estate Attorneys, the American Board of Trial Advocates and the American Health Lawyers Association.

Commercial Litigation 

“Respected by peers, clients and judges, the team has skills to match the national firms, but with good local contacts and knowledge.”      ~Chambers and Partners USA

National law firms, corporate general counsel, and local businesses look first to Rodey’s Complex and Commercial Litigation team when they need the most experienced counsel for the most difficult cases. We routinely manage large commercial and business-related cases, from inception to appeal, in state and federal courts across New Mexico. Our litigation and case management experience, along with our depth of resources, allows us to assemble skilled teams to address all of our clients’ changing needs.

New Mexico’s legal landscape is familiar territory to our complex and commercial litigation attorneys. Clients tell us that our broad knowledge of New Mexico law, judges, court procedures, and opposing counsel is invaluable to their ability to litigate in New Mexico.

We are nationally recognized as the preeminent New Mexico class action defense firm. We regularly defend clients in putative class actions involving antitrust, consumer fraud, defective drugs and medical devices, employment discrimination law, modal premium insurance, casualty insurance, automobile defects, unfair pricing practices, and Constitutional law.

When an appeal is called for, Rodey is ready with the best appellate team in New Mexico. Rodey lawyers have represented litigants in many leading cases decided by the New Mexico appellate courts as well as in the Tenth Circuit United States Court of Appeals and the United States Supreme Court. Our appellate practice group frequently joins our trial litigation teams to provide expertise in preparing for and handling proceedings at the appellate level.

Our attorneys handle all types of complex and commercial litigation including:

  • Antitrust
  • Banking
  • Bankruptcy
  • Bet-the-company
  • Class actions
  • Construction law
  • Consumer/high technology
  • Contract and UCC law
  • Creditors Rights
  • Corporation and partnership disputes
  • Cultural resources law
  • Environmental law
  • First Amendment law
  • Insurance law
  • Lender liability defense
  • Mass tort
  • Surety law
  • Title and other real estate disputes
  • Trust and estate litigation

When you need the strength of a powerful New Mexico firm, Rodey’s Complex and Commercial Litigation team assures you of maximum legal muscle.

Jane Fox Lehman

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Jane Fox Lehman is an associate in the Construction Practice Group of Pepper Hamilton LLP, resident in the Pittsburgh office.

Bar Admissions:

  • Pennsylvania

Court Admissions:

  • U.S. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania

Firm Overview:

Pepper Hamilton LLP counsels each client as if it were our only client.

With more than 425 lawyers in 13 offices across the United States, we use the unique skills and talents of our people, the breadth of our practices, and the depth of our experience to deliver powerful solutions to clients’ legal and business issues. The firm was founded in 1890.

Start closer to the right answer.® Our firm has grown from a two-person law office formed in Philadelphia to a large, sophisticated law firm with a national and international practice. While much about Pepper is new and different from its beginnings, we retain traditional values passed down through the decades: respect for the rule of law, pride in an excellent work product and commitment to the client’s cause. Today, Pepper Hamilton is a diverse firm of men and women from a broad spectrum of backgrounds, united in these values.

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Marilyn Klinger

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Ms. Klinger serves as the Managing Partner of SMTD Law’s Los Angeles office. She is involved in all aspects of construction law on a state and national level, representing the full spectrum of the construction industry, from owners, contractors, subcontractors and sureties. Ms. Klinger’s practice includes time-related claims and litigation (e.g., delay/impact), legal advice and counsel regarding the contracting process (e.g., bidding and contract disputes/performance bond claims), payment enforcement/defense (e.g. payment bonds/mechanics liens/stop payment notices), administrative and scope claims and litigation (e.g., differing site conditions, change and extra work orders/inadequate plans and specifications and subcontractor substitutions) and counseling and transactional services to the construction industry (e.g., general advice and counsel, including contract preparation, evaluation and negotiation). In addition, she has extensive experience in dispute resolution including litigation, trial, appeals, arbitration and mediation.

Ms. Klinger is a hard-working “straight shooter.” Early in her career, she became a pioneer in construction law, being one of the first women attorneys to practice in the primarily male field. Through her passion and unique intelligence she has established a vital, nationwide practice involved in all aspects of construction law and a career marked by increasingly prominent leadership positions. She is recognized as an innovator in legal problem-solving and as a thought leader who is a frequently published author and sought-after speaker for professional legal, construction and educational publications and organizations. Marilyn loves humor and thinks everyone is way too serious.

CONSTRUCTION LITIGATION, GOVERNMENT CONTRACTS, AND COUNSELING:

The Firm handles all facets of federal and state public works construction projects, and commercial and private works projects. The Firm counsels owners, developers, general contractors, subcontractors and suppliers in a broad range of transaction and litigation matters. With decades of collective experience handling construction disputes, our attorneys are uniquely qualified to address the complex issues that arise in the construction industry.

Prior to the start of construction, our attorneys found that negotiating appropriate contract terms and counseling our clients’ project team regarding the legal requirements of a particular project often make or break the project. Our attorneys frequently counsel construction clients with matters involving:

  • Preparing and negotiating contracts
  • Interpreting regulatory requirements, including licensing issues, set aside qualifications and the Federal Acquisition Regulations
  • Creating project specific form documents to comply with legal, contractual, and statutory requirements
  • Analyzing, prosecuting and defending bid protests
  • Analyzing subcontractor listing requirements

Once construction has commenced, our clients demand prompt, accurate and experienced responses to their questions. Our attorneys are well versed in handling:

  • Subcontractor substitutions
  • Payment disputes
  • Work stoppages
  • Stop notice and bond claims
  • Delay and productivity claims
  • Labor and prevailing wage claims with the Department of Labor Standards Enforcement and others
  • Change order and extra work disputes
  • Termination disputes
  • Submittal, scope, and design disputes

Many projects are successfully closed out without the need for experienced counsel. When disputes arise, the Firm is positioned to effectively and efficiently address our clients’ claim needs. Avoidance of unnecessary litigation costs and expenses is important, and, as such, the Firm assists with analyzing and quantifying claims prior to litigation and providing upfront risk analysis. By doing so, we are able to provide our clients with workable solutions to avoid litigation.

If prosecuting or defending a claim is necessary, our attorneys are experienced and have a tremendous record of success. Our attorneys have successfully handled trials and claims in state and federal courts, various Boards of Contract Appeals, the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, arbitrations, and other tribunals involving:

  • Differing site conditions
  • Liquidated damages and delays
  • Improper and/or inflated back-charges
  • Subcontractor substitutions
  • False claims
  • Mechanic’s liens, stop notices and payment bond claims
  • Prompt payment penalties
  • Defective design
  • Loss of productivity and disruption
  • Cumulative impact or “ripple effects”
  • Modified total costs
  • Cardinal Change and Abandonment
  • Breach of warranty and construction defects
  • Prevailing wage claims