Related Information
Education
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University of Louisville
M.B.A. 1980
Business Administration
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University of Louisville Louis D. Brandeis School of Law
J.D. 1975
Dean's List (six semesters); Associate Editor, Law Review; Student Representative to Faculty Council; Omicron Delta Kappa Honorary Fraternity
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University of Kentucky
1970
Graduate Studies in Business Administration
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University of Kentucky
B.S. 1968
Mechanical Engineering
Member Student Government Council, Student Center Board of Directors, Interfraternity Council Board of Directors and Presidential Advisory Council
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University of Dayton
Mechanical Engineering
Full scholarship presented by the National Association of Plumbing, Heating and Cooling Contractors
Admissions
Kentucky
U.S. Supreme Court
U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky
U.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Georgia
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois
U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee
U.S. District Court for Nebraska
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida
U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit
U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit
Service Areas
- Alternative Dispute Resolution
- Civil Litigation
- Complex / Large Litigation
- Corporate General Services
- Environmental Law
- Professional Liability (Non-Medical Professionals)
- Trade Association Law
- Trial Practice
- Charitable and Non-Profit Organizations
- Construction
- Construction Law
- Sustainability & Emerging Technologies
- Drafting, Reviewing & Negotiating Construction Contracts
- Energy & Electrical Power Law
Industry Experience
- Government Procurement & Contracts
- Not For Profit & Professional / Trade Organizations
- Religious Institutions
- Construction
- Structural Steel
Memberships
- American College of Construction Lawyers
- American Bar Association
- American Bar Foundation, Fellow
- Kentucky Bar Association
- Louisville Bar Association
- Downtown Louisville Rotary Club
- Louisville Committee on Foreign Relations
- American Institute of Steel Construction
- Society of Construction Law, United Kingdom, Member since 2008
Community Involvement
- Downtown Louisville Rotary Club
- University of Kentucky, National Alumni Association, Board of Directors
David Ratterman is a Member of the firm's Construction Service Group, concentrating his practice in general construction law, with particular emphasis on the fabricated structural steel industry. His immersion in the construction industry began as a water boy on construction sites at age 10 and evolved through a series of engineering and construction positions with the U.S. Navy, state government and private industry.
He has been an officer or advisor to 12 industry trade organizations and professional societies involved in the fabricated structural steel industry. Since 1989, he has served as Secretary and General Counsel of the American Institute of Steel Construction and also serves on that body's "Code of Standard Practice" Committee and as counsel to its National Steel Bridge Alliance.
David has been lead trial counsel for numerous contractors, design professionals, material suppliers and construction owners involved in complex matters in litigation, arbitration and construction mediation. Formally trained as a construction arbitrator and mediator and listed on several national construction neutral panels, David has participated as an ADR neutral or advocate in resolution of construction disputes totaling well in excess of a half billion dollars.
Mr. Ratterman was also an advisor to FEMA Task Forces that investigated structural damage caused by the 1994 Northridge, California, earthquake and the September 11, 2001, collapse of the World Trade Center towers.
He is a Life Fellow of the American Bar Foundation, is a Fellow and has served on the Board of Governors of the American College of Construction Lawyers and was the Founder and first Chair of the Kentucky Bar Association Section on Construction and Public Contract Law. David is listed in "Who's Who in American Law;" The Best Lawyers in America® (2003-2012) in Construction Law & Construction Litigation and "Best Lawyer of the Year (2011) in Construction Law in Louisville; Chambers USA, "America's Leading Lawyers in Business" (2010-11) and in Kentucky Super Lawyers magazine. Since 2008 he has been listed among the Top 50 Lawyers in the state by Kentucky Super Lawyers.
A prolific author and speaker on a wide variety of construction law topics, David has presented or published in excess of 50 research papers, technical papers and articles. He has participated in or moderated numerous panel discussions on construction law topics at a wide variety of domestic and international academic symposia.
Recent Speaking Engagements and Publications
- "Collapse of the World Trade Center brings modications to high rise building and fire codes," Stites & Harbison, PLLC, Client Alets, September 12, 2011
- "Preparing your company for life after recovery," Stites & Harbison, PLLC, Client Alert, October 7, 2010
- "Sustainability & Steel: New Laws & Green Codes that Give Steel an Edge," Steel Day Free Webinar, Stites & Harbison, PLLC, September 24, 2010
- "Avoiding Legal Pitfalls in Sustainable Design and Construction," Green Steps Conference, One Southern Indiana Chamber & Economic Development, Jeffersonville, Ind., October 23, 2009
- "AISC Code of Standard Practice for Structural Engineers," Podcast, Structural Engineers Association of Ohio 2009 Annual Conference, September 10, 2009