James R.Newland

Partner

Jim is the co-chair of Seyfarth's International Dispute Resolution group. He represents private clients, international organizations, and foreign entities in complex arbitration, litigation, and transactions, involving protection and enforcement of their immunities, construction/development projects, government contracts, and international arbitration of project disputes.


More About Jim

Jim is an attorney and former architect. Jim and Sara Farabow co-chair Seyfarth’s International Dispute Resolution group. His practice involves contentious and transactional matters for international organizations, sovereigns, and private clients. Jim leads the firm’s International Organizations and Foreign Sovereigns team. In many cases, Jim litigates significant cases of first impression regarding the immunities of international organizations, complex engineering and construction matters, and corporate disputes, including trials, arbitrations, and appellate work in the D.C. Circuit. Jim works closely with other Seyfarth practice groups to offer a full spectrum of services to his clients when they need advice or representation on employment, internal investigations, intellectual property, real estate, health care, or corporate practices.

His International Organizations practice includes the representation of those organizations in conducting their affairs, while protecting their unique privileges and immunities set by their charters, articles of agreement, the International Organizations Immunities Act, or other sources of law as may be applicable. When working with colleagues in other practice groups, Jim coordinates their privileges and immunities with the substantive advice provided by his colleagues in the Employment, Intellectual Property, Health Care, Real Estate, and Commercial Services groups.

In his construction practice, Jim represents private owners, contractors, and international entities in contentious and non-contentions matters involving government and private design and construction projects. The 2016 Chambers USA guide describes him as "very well versed in construction law and construction-related issues." His work includes drafting and negotiating construction contracts and procurement documents, such as RFPs, for design, construction, EPC, Alliance/Integrated Project Delivery, design-build services; providing advice during the design phase and during the contractor’s preconstruction services; and providing analysis and advice on the preparation, prosecution, and defense of claims during the construction phase. On the contentious side, Jim leads his clients through mediation, arbitration, or litigation of complex claims involving design and construction issues. Jim’s work includes the headquarters of international organizations, embassies, power (generation and distribution), mixed-use, plant and distribution facilities, buildings, transportation (airports, highways, rail), laboratories, hospitals, hotels, and resorts.

Outside of Seyfarth, Jim is an adjunct professor and a member of the Construction Industry Advisory Board of Virginia Tech’s Myers-Lawson School of Construction, where he teaches the certificate program on construction risk management and courses in the custom solutions program (https://www.cpe.vt.edu/mlsoc/instructors.html). Jim teaches many construction law courses and is on the faculty for the Masters Institute in Construction Contracting offered by Federal Publications. He also teaches Federal Publications’ ten-part construction law webinar series titled, Construction Contracts and Risk Management. Other courses he has taught for Federal Publications include, Practical Construction Law, the Concentrated Course in Construction Contracts, Bonds, Liens and Insurance, Negotiation, Government Construction Contracts, Changes and Claims, FIDIC Contract Claims, and Prosecution of Government Contract Claims.

Before practicing law, Jim was an accomplished architect and served as the project manager for commercial and public architecture projects.

  • JD, University of Pittsburgh School of Law
  • BA, Virginia Tech
  • District of Columbia
  • Virginia
  • US Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit
  • US Court of Appeals, DC Circuit
  • US District Court, Eastern District of Virginia
  • US Bankruptcy Court, Eastern District of Virginia
  • District of Columbia Superior Court
  • Virginia Supreme Court