Skip to content Peter E. Strniste

Lawyers

Boston
28 State Street
Suite 1050
Boston, MA 02109


New York
One Battery Park Plaza
28th Floor
New York, NY 10004


Hartford
One Financial Plaza
755 Main Street
Suite 1700
Hartford, CT 06103


Education

J.D., University of Pittsburgh School of Law

  • Moot Court
  • twice received Owens Fellowship Award

B.S., Old Dominion University

Honors

Owens Fellowship Award, University of Pittsburgh School of Law, two-time winner

Selected as a Rising Star to the Connecticut Super Lawyers list from 2010 to 2013.

Selected to the Connecticut Super Lawyers list from 2014 to 2019.

Selected by his peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America© in the area of Construction Law (2017-2021).

Finalist, Associated General Contractors of Connecticut, Industry Recognition Award - Service Provider of the Year (2015)

Biography

Peter Strniste dedicates his practice to construction and surety law, business litigation, and the negotiation of all types of construction contracts. He is a member of the firm’s Construction group, and he counsels clients on issues surrounding all aspects of construction projects. He routinely represents clients in the Courts of New York, Massachusetts and Connecticut.

Dispute Resolution

Peter has represented clients in both state and federal courts in a wide variety of litigation matters. He has served as a neutral arbitrator for the American Arbitration Association and has also appeared before various arbitration tribunals on behalf of clients. Peter frequently represents owners, developers, construction managers, general contractors, and trade contractors. He counsels them regarding claims for breach of contract and warranty, defective and deficient plans and specifications, construction defects, insurance disputes, project delays, impacts and inefficiency claims, and wrongful terminations. He has represented owners, contractors, subcontractors, and some of the largest sureties in the country in actions involving bond defaults and defense of bad faith claims on both public and private projects.

Peter has a history of obtaining favorable results for his clients and is successful in resolving most cases without litigation or short of trial. Recently, he obtained a zero dollar settlement for a contractor client who faced a condominium association’s multi-million dollar claim for defective work. He also obtained a favorable settlement for a contractor seeking compensation for delays and inefficiencies extending over a several year period of time on a large scale public construction project in New York. Peter also obtained a very favorable jury verdict for a contractor client following a five week jury trial involving competing claims which included defending against owner claims for defective and incomplete work, and also involved design deficiencies and obligations under the Spearin Doctrine.

Peter has also handled business torts and equitable causes of action and has obtained for clients such remedies as injunctions, orders to quiet title, and judgments of foreclosure of mechanics' liens and other security instruments. In addition to state and federal trial courts, he has represented clients before the Connecticut Supreme Court and the United States Second and Eleventh Circuit Courts of Appeals.

Contract Procurement and Project Delivery

Peter routinely drafts and negotiates construction contracts for all types of project delivery methods including cost plus with a GMP, design build and lump sum. He is experienced at negotiating large construction, design and trade contracts in both the New York metro area and Boston, Massachusetts, where there are especially stringent city and state requirements for construction projects. Recently, he negotiated a construction management agreement and trade contracts for a $150 million warehouse and distribution center in New York, securing favorable cost saving and compensation provisions for his client. Peter routinely negotiates and is familiar with all the industry contracts published by the American Institute of Architects, Associated General Contractors, and Engineers Joint Contract Documents Committee, and other organizations.

Peter frequently writes and presents on construction matters. He has been listed in The Best Lawyers in America© in the area of Construction Law since 2017, and has been selected to the Connecticut Super Lawyers list since 2014. In 2015, he was selected as a finalist for the Associated General Contractors of Connecticut, Industry Recognition Award – Service Provider of the Year.

Admissions

  • New York
  • Commonwealth of Massachusetts
  • Connecticut
  • U.S. Court of Appeals, First Circuit
  • U.S. Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit
  • U.S. District Court, District of Connecticut
  • U.S. District Court, District of Massachusetts
  • U.S. District Court, Southern, Eastern, and Northern Districts of New York

Memberships

  • American Arbitration Association, Roster of Neutrals, Expedited Commercial and Construction Cases
  • American Bar Association, Forum on the Construction Industry
  • State Bar Connecticut, Construction Law Section
  • Connecticut Surety Association, Current Member of Board of Directors, Past President, Past Vice President and Treasurer
  • Defense Research Institute, Surety and Fidelity Law Section
  • Construction Lawyers Society of America, Past Fellow
Experience
Publications & Presentations
Loading...