Energy Projects Attorney Maximizes Growth of Niche Industry with a Help from Intelligent Office

Steve Barnett earned his first degree as a mechanical engineer and subsequently obtained a P.E. license in several states as he worked his way up to the role of project director for a multi-national construction company. It was while overseeing the construction of power plants and renewable energy facilities around the world that he decided to pursue a law degree.

“The adversarial environment in which power plants are constructed required more knowledge than I had of the rules of the game,” explains Barnett. “The legal doctrines relating to parties’ risks, liabilities and responsibilities that flow out of the world of contracts became increasingly complex so I shut down my career temporarily in order to attend law school.”

Barnett graduated with a J.D. from at Georgia State University College of Law in 2003, and was admitted to the Georgia Bar the same year. Today Barnett Law Offices, PC operates in a niche market of energy projects. The specific area of law Barnett practices is project delivery which is a subset of construction law. For projects such as power plants and renewable energy facilities and synthetic fuel facilities, Barnett drafts and negotiates the agreements and contracts to build these facilities, then representing the owner’s interests throughout project performance, and often into commercial operation.

“Generally I work for the owner and I’m dealing with the contractors and the suppliers and the service providers and negotiating with them and coordinating the scope and terms of their supply,” continues Barnett. “There are always claims and disputes arising out of these contracts.”

Because Barnett is a solo practitioner (although he affiliates with larger firms in other states) and the cases he takes tend to be pretty large, he has the luxury of working closely with only a few clients at a given time.

“I just finished a year-long assignment that ultimately led to arbitration,” interjects Barnett noting that arbitration is a common method of resolving project related disputes, and an area for which he has been trained by the American Arbitration Association.

In the past few years, renewable energy has taken a very aggressive growth posture. Barnett is very excited to watch as a national energy policy takes shape and his practice blossoms.

“We’re very busy,” he shares.

Barnett moved both his law practice and his consulting business, Energy Project Delivery, Inc., to Intelligent Office earlier this year.

“I had kept an office space in Roswell for five years but I found that I was not using it very much because most of my clients are out of state.”

Barnett responded to an email invitation from Intelligent Office to consider their services and was instantly hooked.

“The IO staff was very professional and personable and the office was probably not more than 500 yards from where I’d worked for the previous for 5 years.”

For more information, contact Steve Barnett of the Barnett Law Offices, PC at 770-992-2255,
skb@barnettlawpc.com or www.barnettlawpc.com. See also Steve’s energy consulting company at: www.energyprojectdeliveryinc.com.