ASA Georgia Builds New Momentum for Georgia’s Subcontractors

Cobb Law Group founder Mark A. Cobb joins the American Subcontractors Association Georgia Chapter Steering Committee

Georgia’s construction industry has changed dramatically over the past several years. Major manufacturing projects, data centers, warehouses, multifamily developments, infrastructure projects, and continued commercial and residential growth have brought new opportunities to contractors across the state.  These changes have also brought new challenges.

For subcontractors and specialty trade contractors, those challenges are particularly important. Contract terms continue to become more complicated. Labor remains difficult to find. Material costs and scheduling problems can quickly affect profitability. And, perhaps most importantly, subcontractors continue to shoulder substantial financial risk while waiting to be paid for labor and materials already furnished to a project.

Against that backdrop, the Georgia Chapter of the American Subcontractors Association (ASA Georgia) is experiencing renewed energy and working to strengthen its presence within Georgia’s construction community.

Mark A. Cobb, founder of Cobb Law Group, has joined that effort as a member of ASA Georgia’s Steering Committee.

For Cobb, whose law practice has focused on the construction industry for decades, participation in ASA Georgia is a natural extension of the work he and Cobb Law Group have performed throughout the state.  As a contributing author of the first national book on subcontractor law, Mark has always been passionate about representing specialty subcontractors on commercial projects.

“Subcontractors are responsible for an extraordinary amount of the work that actually gets a construction project built,” Cobb said. “At the same time, they assume tremendous contractual and financial risk. A strong organization devoted specifically to their interests is good for subcontractors and good for Georgia’s construction industry.”

A Renewed Voice for Georgia’s Subcontractors

The national American Subcontractors Association (“ASA”) has represented the interests of subcontractors, specialty trade contractors, and suppliers nationally for decades.  Its mission is different from that of many broader construction organizations. ASA concentrates specifically on the business concerns of subcontractors—the companies that perform much of the skilled work required to take a project from plans to completion.  And, it is that distinction which matters.

A subcontractor may enter a project facing a contract drafted primarily to protect the general contractor. The subcontract may contain extensive indemnity obligations, strict notice requirements, payment provisions, change-order procedures, scheduling requirements, insurance obligations, and provisions shifting substantial project risk downstream.  Meanwhile, that same subcontractor must pay employees, suppliers, insurance premiums, equipment expenses, and other overhead regardless of whether payment arrives on time.

ASA gives those companies a collective voice.

The Georgia Chapter’s renewed efforts include bringing subcontractors and construction professionals together for education, networking, advocacy, and discussion of the practical problems affecting Georgia’s construction businesses.

Getting Paid Remains One of the Industry’s Biggest Concerns

Few issues are more important to a subcontractor than payment.

A successful construction company can perform excellent work, maintain a strong backlog, and still find itself in financial difficulty when receivables remain unpaid.

Georgia law provides contractors, subcontractors, and material suppliers with important remedies when payment problems arise. On private construction projects, those remedies may include Georgia mechanics’ and materialmen’s liens. On bonded projects, subcontractors and suppliers may have rights against a payment bond. Federal public projects may implicate the Miller Act, while Georgia public projects may involve Georgia’s public works payment-bond statutes, sometimes referred to as the Georgia Little Miller Act.

But these remedies do not operate automatically.

Georgia’s lien and bond statutes contain deadlines, notice provisions, and procedural requirements that can determine whether a company has an enforceable claim. Waiting until a receivable has become seriously delinquent can sometimes leave a contractor or supplier with fewer options than it would have had if the problem had been addressed earlier.  That is an area Cobb knows particularly well particularly since he wrote the Georgia Construction Law Handbook specifically for subcontracts and suppliers.

Mark Cobb Brings Decades of Construction Law Experience to ASA Georgia

Cobb has devoted his legal practice to Georgia’s construction industry for nearly three decades.  As founder of Cobb Law Group, he has represented contractors, subcontractors, suppliers, owners, developers, and other construction professionals throughout Georgia. A significant portion of his practice has involved helping construction companies protect and enforce their rights to payment.  His work includes Georgia mechanics & materialmen’s liens, payment bond claims, Miller Act claims, Georgia Little Miller Act claims, construction contracts, construction mediation & arbitration, payment disputes, and construction litigation.

Cobb is also a frequent writer and speaker on Georgia construction law, particularly on issues involving lien rights, bond claims, contracting, and construction collections. That experience is particularly relevant to ASA’s educational mission.

“The best time for a subcontractor to learn about its lien rights, notice requirements, change-order procedures, or payment-bond rights isn’t after something has gone wrong,” Cobb said. “One of the real benefits of an organization like ASA is the opportunity to give construction companies useful information before they need it.”

Better Contracts and Better Business Practices

Payment remedies are only one part of the equation. Many construction disputes can be traced back to the contract signed before anyone arrived at the jobsite.  Subcontractors routinely encounter provisions concerning indemnification, payment, retainage, delay, notice, changes in the work, dispute resolution, termination, insurance, attorneys’ fees, and other subjects that can materially affect the profitability of a project.  A contract worth several million dollars may be signed after considerably less review than many businesses would devote to a transaction involving a fraction of that amount.

Industry education can help change that.

Understanding how contract provisions operate in the real world allows subcontractors to identify unacceptable risks, negotiate important provisions where possible, price unavoidable risks appropriately, and establish internal procedures necessary to comply with the agreement.

These are precisely the kinds of practical business issues for which a strong subcontractor organization can provide value.

Building Connections Across Georgia

Georgia’s construction industry no longer revolves around a single metropolitan market.  Atlanta remains one of the country’s major construction markets, but significant projects are underway throughout the state. Savannah and coastal Georgia continue to experience substantial industrial and logistics growth. Manufacturing and infrastructure investment has transformed communities in other parts of Georgia. Construction remains active in Augusta, Columbus, Macon, Athens, South Georgia, and communities throughout the state.  The issues confronting a subcontractor in Savannah, however, may be remarkably similar to those confronting one in Atlanta or Albany.  Creating connections among those companies is another important role for ASA Georgia.

“There is tremendous value in getting people who face the same problems into the same room,” Cobb said. “Someone else in the industry has probably dealt with the problem you’re facing. Strong trade associations create opportunities for people to learn from those experiences.”

Advocacy for the Companies That Build Georgia

Education and networking are important, but ASA also has a broader role.  Construction laws and regulations have real financial consequences. Rules governing payment, retainage, bonding, liens, procurement, insurance, and contracting can alter how risk is allocated among project participants.  Individual subcontractors rarely have the time or resources to follow every proposed legislative or regulatory change affecting their businesses.  A trade organization can provide the industry with a more organized voice.

ASA Georgia has historically been involved with issues affecting subcontractor payment and contracting rights, and a revitalized chapter creates an opportunity for Georgia’s specialty contractors to participate more actively in discussions that affect their businesses.

For Cobb, that advocacy is another reason to participate.

“Georgia needs general contractors, owners, developers, subcontractors, suppliers, design professionals, and sureties to have healthy businesses,” he said. “But a healthy construction industry also requires a reasonable allocation of risk and a payment system that works. Subcontractors need to be part of that conversation.”

Looking Ahead for ASA Georgia

The renewed activity surrounding ASA Georgia comes at a good time.  Georgia remains one of the country’s most active construction markets, and the businesses responsible for building those projects need resources that help them operate more effectively.  ASA Georgia provides an opportunity for subcontractors and specialty trade contractors to meet other industry professionals, improve their understanding of important business and legal issues, participate in advocacy, and strengthen relationships across the construction community.

Cobb Law Group looks forward to supporting those efforts and Mark Cobb’s work on the ASA Georgia Steering Committee.

Georgia subcontractors, suppliers, and construction professionals interested in the organization can learn more by visiting the American Subcontractors Association – Georgia Chapter at ASAGeorgia.org.

About Mark A. Cobb and Cobb Law Group

Mark A. Cobb is the founder of Cobb Law Group, a Georgia law firm focused on construction law. Cobb has represented participants in Georgia’s construction industry for nearly three decades and is a frequent author and speaker on construction contracts, materialmen’s liens, payment bonds, and construction-related payment issues.

Cobb Law Group represents construction clients throughout Georgia, including contractors, subcontractors, material suppliers, owners, and developers. The firm’s practice includes Georgia mechanics’ and materialmen’s liens, payment bond claims, Miller Act and Georgia Little Miller Act claims, construction contracts, payment disputes, and construction litigation.

To learn more about Mark Cobb and Cobb Law Group’s Georgia construction law practice, visit CobbLawGroup.net.

Questions About Georgia Construction Payment Rights?
Cobb Law Group represents contractors, subcontractors, suppliers, owners, and other construction professionals throughout Georgia. Our attorneys regularly handle materialmen’s liens, payment bond claims, construction contracts, and construction payment disputes.

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This article is provided for general informational purposes only and is not legal advice. Georgia lien and payment-bond claims are subject to statutory requirements and deadlines. The application of Georgia law depends upon the facts and circumstances of each matter.