Alison R. Mullins

Alison R. Mullins is a partner in the firm’s Fairfax, Virginia office and focuses her practice on all aspects of construction law and civil litigation in Virginia, Maryland and the District of Columbia.

Bio
Practice Areas
Education
News and Insights

Ms. Mullins primarily represents architects, engineers, contractors, subcontractors, design professionals, and owners in technical construction industry matters. She provides clients with thorough risk analysis, evaluation, allocation, and management of business practices, in addition to assisting with the preparation and negotiation of contracts. Ms. Mullins also provides pre-claim counseling to clients. When disputes arise, she negotiates, mediates, and/or arbitrates contract enforcement issues, and works out payment plans for monetary defaults. She has tried cases before judges and juries regarding complex civil litigation, including matters involving commercial and residential construction projects.

Ms. Mullins is admitted to practice in Virginia, Maryland and the District of Columbia, as well as the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, the U.S. District Court of Maryland, the U.S. Supreme Court and the Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of the United States.

She is peer rated AV Preeminent by Martindale Hubbell for very high ethical standards. Among her many recognitions, she has been named to the list of Best Lawyers in America® for Construction Litigation annually since 2022 and was named a Super Lawyer in Virginia and the District of Columbia in 2021, 2022 and 2023 in the area of Construction Litigation, and Top Attorney by Arlington Magazine in 2019, 2021, 2022 and 2023.

Ms. Mullins is very involved in the professional community outside of the office, including serving as an adjunct professor at the George Mason University Antonin Scalia Law School, a Fellow of The Construction Lawyers Society of America, Chair of the Virginia State Bar's Construction & Public Contracts Law Section, and President-Elect of the Virginia Women Attorneys Association, State Board, among many other activities.

Prior to joining C&W, Ms. Mullins was a founding partner at Shannon Mullins & Wright LLP. Before entering private practice, she started her legal career as a contracts manager and in-house counsel at a large architectural firm in Northern Virginia. From that experience, Ms. Mullins gained unique insight and perspective on client needs, and how to meet them

Ms. Mullins received her B.S. from Southern Connecticut State University in 2002 and her J.D. from Roger Williams University School of Law in Bristol, Rhode Island in 2005.

When she is away from the office, she enjoys spending time relaxing at home in North Arlington with her family, running marathons, and traveling (especially to Disney).

Professional & Community Involvement

Adjunct Professor, Transactional Drafting, George Mason University Antonin Scalia Law School
Fellow, The Construction Lawyers Society of America
Immediate Past, Chair, Construction & Public Contracts Law Section, Virginia State Bar
Vice President, Mandatory Continuing Legal Education Board Member, Virginia State Bar
President, Virginia Women Attorneys Association, State Board
Past-President, Virginia Women Attorneys Association, Northern Virginia Chapter
Supporting Partner, American Institute of Architects, Northern Virginia Chapter
Member, Fairfax County Bar Association
Member, Alexandria Bar Association

Awards & Recognitions

The Best Lawyers in America®, Litigation – Construction, 2024, 2023 & 2022
Super Lawyers, Top Rated Lawyer for Construction Litigation, Virginia and District of Columbia – 2023, 2022 & 2021
Super Lawyers Rising Star, Virginia and District of Columbia – 2020-2015
Legal Elite, Construction, Virginia Business Magazine – 2023-2016
Woman Leader in The Law, Legal Leaders Top Rated Lawyers – 2022 & 2020
Client Champion Platinum, Martindale-Hubbell – since 2021
Peer Rating of AV Preeminent, Martindale-Hubbell – 2023-2017
Judicial Edition Rating of AV Preeminent, Martindale-Hubbell – 2023-2017
Top Attorneys, Construction, Arlington Magazine – 2023, 2022, 2021, & 2019
AIA Northern Virginia Chapter Award, The American Institute of Architects Northern Virginia Chapter – October 2020
Top Lawyer, Civil Defense, Northern Virginia Magazine – 2020 & 2019
Top Attorneys, Virginia’s Outstanding Young Lawyers – 2020-2018, 2016
Top Attorneys, Washington DC’s Outstanding Young Lawyers – 2020
America’s Most Honored Professionals – Top 1% – 2021-2018

Publications

Speaking Engagements

Presenter, “Practice Management – AIA Contract Review Documents” ARE Prep Seminars 2022, The Young Architects Forum of AIA Northern Virginia, March 2022
Presenter, “Contracts, Construction Documents, and Licensing Obligations” and “Ethics and Standards of Practice”, AIA Northern Virginia Emerging Leaders in Architecture 2022 Honors Academy, March 2022
Presenter, Practicing Law The Jetson’s Way: Effective Advocacy in Remote Proceedings, Virginia State Bar 42nd Annual Construction Law and Public Contracts Seminar, November 2021
Presenter, The Ethics of Mediation, Virginia Women Attorneys Association Annual Conference, September 2021
Presenter, Handling Ethical Issues in Engineering Practice, Sponsored by HalfMoon Education Inc., May 2021
Presenter, Architect Registration Exam, Contract Documents, Legal (Prep Course), AIA Northern Virginia Young Architects Forum, 2014-2021
Presenter, At the Crossroads of Contracts, Construction Documents, & Licensing Obligations, Emerging Leaders in Architecture Sponsored by American Institute of Architects, March 2019-2021
Presenter, Ethical Considerations in Contract Negotiation, Drafting and Administration, Advanced Construction Contracts: Sustainability and Ethics Sponsored by HalfMoon Education Inc., July 2020
Presenter, Contract Law Primer for Engineers, Sponsored by HalfMoon Education Inc., January 2019
Presenter, The Power of Networking, 11th Annual Virginia Women’s Business Conference, December 2019
Presenter, Contract Provisions Expanding Liability, Emerging Leaders Institute Sponsored by American Council of Engineering Companies, February 2018
Presenter, Setting Relationships Up for Success, Virginia Women’s Business Conference, December 2017
Presenter, To Document or Not to Document: That is the Question, Design Professionals Learning Event Sponsored by RLI, 2017
Co-Presenter, Evidentiary Issues in a Construction Trial/Foundation and Admissibility of E-Documents; Update on Federal and State Evidentiary Rules, Virginia State Bar, Construction Law & Public Contracts Section, Annual Seminar, November 2015
Moderator, Great Expectations: What Insureds Expect from Outside Counsel, 54th Meeting of Invited Attorneys Sponsored by Victor O. Schinnerer & Company, Inc., May 2015
Moderator, Mediation Ethics, Construction Law & Public Contracts Section, Virginia State Bar, Norfolk, March 2015
Moderator, Mediation Ethics, Construction Law & Public Contracts Section, Virginia State Bar, Roanoke, September 2014
Co-presenter, Contracts, Structural Engineers Association of Metropolitan Washington, March 2014
Co-presenter, Virginia Engineering Law, Halfmoon Education, Inc., September 2013
Co-presenter, The 411 on RFP Preparation and AIA Documents, Community Associations Institute, Washington Metropolitan Chapter, September 2013
Co-presenter, Show Me the Money – Contract Terms That Help You Get Paid…and Make Your Life Easier, Presentation to RLI Insurance, April 2013
Co-presenter, Take It or Leave It, Structural Engineers Association of Metropolitan Washington, November 2011
Presenter, Architects and the Law, Professional Practice Class at the Washington-Alexandria Center for Architecture, November 2008