Joseph Dirik is a senior associate in Fulbright & Jaworski L.L.P.'s Dallas office. Joe has 20 years of experience in the construction industry as a construction operations manager and executive. This experience enables him to provide practical, effective and efficient legal services to his clients. 

In particular, Joe helps clients resolve business disputes through alternate dispute resolution forums, contract appeal boards and at trial. He also counsels his contractor clients on contract negotiations and risk management issues. Joe's business experience living and working in over 40 countries helps him effectively communicate with clients from all over the world.

• Obtained a favorable resolution for a government contractor facing debarment by the U.S. Army, which permitted the contractor to stay in business 
• Obtained a dismissal with prejudice by the Court of Federal Claims of a $1.8 million claim by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers against a foreign construction contractor
• Obtained a negotiated resolution of a bid protest in which the agency paid the client's bid preparation costs and rebid the procurement
• Successfully negotiated multiple contractor claims against the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for various projects in Afghanistan
• Obtained a favorable decision for a modular building manufacturer in a lawsuit with its general contractor customer over a $1.2 million dispute involving alleged defects and delays
• Successfully represented a contractor after the U.S. Government terminated the contract for convenience; offered the contractor a "no-cost" termination; eventually paid the contractor for its termination costs
• Obtained favorable summary judgment disposition for construction manager on a claims brought in connection with a large pipeline project
• Represented a Finnish company in its contact negotiations with the United States Navy
• Successfully represented a general contractor in a lawsuit brought by its subcontractor on a hotel project in Dallas in which the subcontractor voluntarily dismissed its suit with prejudice and without any payment by the client
• Obtained a favorable judgment or dispositive ruling in homebuilder client's favor against subrogation claims brought by a homeowner's insurance company
• Successfully prevented construction contractor client's financial information from being disclosed in response to a Freedom of Information Act request on a U.S. Army project

• American Bar Association
  • Construction Industry Forum and Public Contract Law
• State Bar of Texas
  • Construction Law and Litigation Sections
• Dallas Bar Association
  • Construction Section
• International Committee for the Associated General Contractors of America
• The Beavers, a fraternal association of construction industry executives
• "Texas Rising Stars" (Construction Litigation), Thomson Reuters, published in Texas Monthly (2011)

• Bi-monthly column, Texas Construction Magazine, McGraw-Hill
• "Tools to Deal With Project Lenders and Prime Contractor Risks," Texas Construction, September 2009
• "Integrated Project Delivery: A Look in the Future?" Texas Construction, December 2008
• Co-author, "Specific Performance: Remedy Not A Right," State Bar Litigation Section Report-The Advocate, Fall 2005 
• Co-author, "What Every Contractor Should Know in the Post-Enron Era," The Constructor, June 2004
• Co-author, "Buy America is a Tough Sell," Roads and Bridges Magazine, August 2004

2002 - J.D., cum laude, Southern Methodist University, Dedman School of Law
1989 - M.B.A., University of Texas at Dallas
1989 - M.A., International Management Studies, University of Texas at Dallas
1978 - B.S., Civil Engineering, University of Texas at Austin

• Garland Crimestoppers, Inc., Garland, Texas
  • Board of Directors