Steven K. Stawski represents banks, mortgage lenders, insurers, health care organizations, design professionals, developers, contractors, manufacturers, distributors, and suppliers in real estate, lending, commercial, construction, and insurance matters.

He monitors new developments in the real estate, mortgage lending, construction, and health care industries and has authored numerous publications. Steve assists clients with transactional and litigation needs arising from the financing, purchase, development, management, licensing, operation, leasing, and sale of personal and real property.

As past co-chair of the State Bar of Michigan-Real Property Section's construction law committee, Steve is often invited to speak to industry groups on recent legal developments and trends. His state-wide practice is based out of the firms' Grand Rapids office.

He enjoys outdoor and sporting activities with his wife Michelle and their three sons.

Noteworthy

• Listed as a "Rising Star" in Michigan Super Lawyers (2008, 2010) -- Construction Litigation, Real Estate, Business Litigation
• Extern, United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan for the Honorable David McKeague
• Law Clerk, Michigan 54-B District Court for the Honorable David L. Jordon

Education

• Princeton University (AB, 1992)
• University of Michigan (Master of Health Services Administration, 1997)
• Michigan State University College of Law, cum laude (JD, 2003); Executive Director, Moot Court

Admitted to Practice

• State Bar of Michigan
• United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan

Presentations

Real Estate

• "Minimizing the Risks of Construction Lender Liability," Fifth Third Bank, May 4, 2010
• "Protecting Rights to Payment: Construction Liens and Other Considerations for Minimizing Financial Risk," SHRR Seminar, March 9, 2010
• "Green Building-Product, Performance or Promise?" SHRR Seminar, January 24, 2008
• Panelist speaker for the Home & Building Association of Greater Grand Rapids, September, 2006
• "Recent Decisions concerning Eminent Domain and Consumer Protection," Seminar sponsored by the Home & Building Association of Greater Grand Rapids, January, 2006
• "Home Equity: The Need to Build Predatory Lending Legislation on a Fundamental Legal and Ethical Foundation," Michigan State University College of Law, 2002

Commercial

• "Contracts and Insurance: Know Your Responsibilities, Rights, and Risks," General Membership Meeting, American Subcontractors Association of Michigan, December 2010.
• "Protecting Rights to Payment," Hot Topics in Construction (seminar), sponsored by Rehmann, December 2010.
• "Roundtable: Spotting the Top 5 Contract Clauses for Your Company," SHRR Seminar, April 30, 2009
• "Conflicts of Interest and Ethics in Public Contracting," seminar sponsored by Lorman Educational Services, August, 2005

Construction

• "Building a Solid Sub-Consultant Agreement," SHRR Seminar, January 24, 2008
• "Payment and Performance Bonds," Michigan Construction Law for Architects, Engineers & Contractors through Half Moon LLC, a registered continuing education sponsor for the American Institute of Architects (AIA), Grand Rapids, MI, April 26, 2007
• "Claim Submission: Timing and Detail is Everything," SHRR Seminar, Traverse City, MI, February 28, 2007
• "Design/Build: From the Contractor's Perspective," SHRR Seminar, Traverse City, MI, February 28, 2007
• "Plans, Specifications, and Lawsuits: Recent Trends," Construction Specifications Institute's (CSI) Roundtable, Hudsonville, MI, January, 2007
• "Ending Claim Exposure," Seminar for Architects, Engineers, and Contractors, Grand Rapids, MI, September, 2006
• "Contribution and Indemnification in the Construction Industry," in-house presentation to field representatives of the Cincinnati Insurance Companies, Grand Rapids, MI, July, 2005
• "Risk Transfer for Contractors," seminar sponsored by Berends Hendricks Stuit, Grand Rapids, February, 2004

Client Successes for Steven K. Stawski

• 9/1/2010
  Steve Stawski successfully represented a real estate appraiser in a licensing action. Also, he obtained secured property on behalf of a bank client to recover on the majority of the outstanding indebtednesses. Finally, Steve successfully secured a re-conveyance of property post tax foreclosure for a special servicer to benefit owners who are deployed in the military.
• 10/1/2009
  Steve Stawski is providing contract review and negotiation services for engineers and contractors specializing in energy efficient designs and applications. For example, he is providing counsel to an electrical subcontractor client that is connecting utilityscale turbines to the grid at the largest utility-scale wind farms in Michigan, and a mechanical contractor that is retrofitting a number of schools with energy efficient systems.
• 2/1/2006
  Chip Behler and Steve Stawski were retained by an LLC created specifically for a large construction project. When it became likely that the LLC was going to lose significant money on the project, one member of the LLC claimed certain contractual rights against the LLC – rights that would have eliminated the member’s share of the losses, and in fact, generated a profit for the member at the additional expense of the LLC. This member also resorted to self-help by removing substantial amounts of cash from the LLC checking account. Through a series of motions Chip and Steve presented to the Court, the LLC was successful in regaining the cash and establishing the member was responsible for its share of project losses. The Court of Appeals recently affirmed that result.

Smith Haughey Articles

Real Estate

• "Owner Response Time is Critical to Challenge Property Assessment Re-Classifications from 'Industrial' to 'Commercial'" SHRR Legal Alert, September 2010
• "Land Contracts and the Split of Equitable and Legal Title: Avoiding Traps for the Unwary," SHRR Newsletter, September 2010
• "Merger Clauses in Commercial Real Estate Purchase Agreements," SHRR Legal Alert, March 2009

Commercial

• "Contract Damages: How is a $14.5 Million Dollar Award Possible on a $400,000 Job?" SHRR Newsletter, September 2008

Construction

• "Architect and Engineer Seal Requirements: AG Opinion Excludes Finished Basements from Calculation," SHRR Newsletter, January 2008
• "Failure to Perform Condition Precedent Can Eliminate Owner's Obligation to Pay," SHRR Newsletter, October 2007
• "Challenging Claims that "Sound in Tort": The Economic Loss Doctrine in the Construction Setting, SHRR Newsletter, June 2007
• "Plans, Specifications, and Lawsuits: Recent Trends in Design Professional and Contractor Liability," SHRR Newsletter, March 2007

External Publications

Commercial

• "A Practical Resource for Managing UCC-Based Litigation," FDCC Quarterly, Vol. 58, No. 4, Summer 2008
• "Managing UCC-Based Litigation: A Practitioner's Guide," Michigan Defense Quarterly, Vol. 25, No. 1, July 2008

Construction

• "The Rules of Construction: Legal Relationships in the Design-Build and Integrated Project Delivery Era," Michigan Real Property Review, Vol. 36, No. 3, Fall 2009.
• "Cutting Off Claims Against Architects, Engineers and Contractors," West Michigan Builder, Vol 1 No. 9, September, 2006

Smith Haughey Publications

News for Steven K. Stawski

10/7/2010
Smith Haughey Lawyers Named "Super Lawyers"

1/14/2010
Smith Haughey Announces New CEO, Shareholders, and Board of Directors

9/25/2008
Smith Haughey Lawyers Named "Super Lawyers"

9/4/2008
Several Smith Haughey Attorneys Recently Published in External Publications.

11/1/2003
Associates Admitted to State Bar

5/20/2003
Grand Rapids Welcomes New Associates

5/15/2002
SHRR Welcomes Summer Associates

Professional Affiliations

• American Bar Association (Litigation Section and Construction Industry Forum)
• State Bar of Michigan, Real Property Section (Past co-chair, Construction Law Committee)
• Grand Rapids Bar Association
• Defense Research Institute
• Member, Michigan Land Title Association (Member, Education Committee)
• Turnaround Management Association

Community Affiliations

• Member, Board of Directors, YMCA Camp Manitou-lin
• Past president, American Inns of Court - Gerald Ford Chapter
• Economic Club of Grand Rapids