Areas of Practice

Mr. Comen has significant experience in major development and construction projects of all kinds, including public and private infrastructure such as bridges, tunnels, highways, water and sewage treatment facilities; and industrial, commercial and residential buildings such as office towers, high-rise condominiums, stadiums and other athletic facilities. He also has extensive experience with power plants of all types, including cogeneration and waste-to-energy facilities. In development and construction disputes, Mr. Comen has represented public and private owners, local, national and international contractors, design-builders, major subcontractors and material and equipment suppliers.

With the objective of establishing effective dispute avoidance and resolution processes, Mr. Comen has counseled a variety of owners in the negotiation and preparation of their contracts with design professionals and with construction managers, general contractors and others associated with the construction process. Among the institutional owners he has represented are Boston College, Brandeis University, Harvard, Middlebury College and Williams College. Mr. Comen also has extensive experience in negotiating design/build and construction contracts for and with private developers.

Mr. Comen has frequently worked with companies that do not typically do real estate development in connection with their contracting with new construction projects. A recent example is the New England...more »

Mr. Comen has significant experience in major development and construction projects of all kinds, including public and private infrastructure such as bridges, tunnels, highways, water and sewage treatment facilities; and industrial, commercial and residential buildings such as office towers, high-rise condominiums, stadiums and other athletic facilities. He also has extensive experience with power plants of all types, including cogeneration and waste-to-energy facilities. In development and construction disputes, Mr. Comen has represented public and private owners, local, national and international contractors, design-builders, major subcontractors and material and equipment suppliers.

With the objective of establishing effective dispute avoidance and resolution processes, Mr. Comen has counseled a variety of owners in the negotiation and preparation of their contracts with design professionals and with construction managers, general contractors and others associated with the construction process. Among the institutional owners he has represented are Boston College, Brandeis University, Harvard, Middlebury College and Williams College. Mr. Comen also has extensive experience in negotiating design/build and construction contracts for and with private developers.

Mr. Comen has frequently worked with companies that do not typically do real estate development in connection with their contracting with new construction projects. A recent example is the New England Patriots, whom he has represented throughout the process of the design and construction of the new Gillette Stadium and now the surrounding Patriot Place mixed-use development.

As the variety of insurance products for large projects has evolved and the number of insurance providers has become more limited, Mr. Comen has counseled clients on the structuring of their insurance programs, the negotiation of policy terms and the effective use of these insurance resources to facilitate the resolution of disputes.

Mr. Comen also has extensive experience in the representation of media, arts and sports clients. In media matters, he has represented television broadcasters and print media on issues such as access of television cameras in the courtroom, privacy matters, libel and defamation, First Amendment, reporters’ privilege, trademark, copyright and proprietary personal and creative rights. In the arts, Mr. Comen has represented internationally renowned art galleries and experts. In sports matters, has represented owners of professional football teams and, occasionally, their players. less »

As a member of the CPR Arbitration Commission, Mr. Comen participated in the preparation of Commercial Arbitration at Its Best, Successful Strategies for Business Users, a book published by the American Bar Association and the CPR Institute for Dispute Resolution. At conferences of international arbitrators and mediators, Mr. Comen has spoken on “Mediation as an Adjunct to Arbitration,” based on a chapter of this book on which he particularly focused his efforts. He has also spoken on various arbitration, mediation and other alternative dispute resolution topics at seminars sponsored by the American Bar Association, American Arbitration Association, Corporate Legal Institute, New England Corporate Counsel Association, Engineering News Record, Associated General Contractors and Continuing Legal Education of New England.

In recent years, the theme of Mr. Comen’s presentations is how outside counsel and in-house counsel can obtain the greatest benefits for their clients by the effective use of mediation for managing dispute resolution. The latest seminars at which he spoke on this topic were the 2005 Annual Meeting of the CPR Institute for Dispute Resolution, the 2005 Annual Meeting of the American Bar Association program “Mediating the Bet the Business, High Stakes, Legally Complex Cases,” and the 2006 Mealey’s Additional Insured Conference. In 2007, the CPR Institute acknowledged Mr. Comen as a member of a select group of “CPR Heroes” for their extraordinary...more »

As a member of the CPR Arbitration Commission, Mr. Comen participated in the preparation of Commercial Arbitration at Its Best, Successful Strategies for Business Users, a book published by the American Bar Association and the CPR Institute for Dispute Resolution. At conferences of international arbitrators and mediators, Mr. Comen has spoken on “Mediation as an Adjunct to Arbitration,” based on a chapter of this book on which he particularly focused his efforts. He has also spoken on various arbitration, mediation and other alternative dispute resolution topics at seminars sponsored by the American Bar Association, American Arbitration Association, Corporate Legal Institute, New England Corporate Counsel Association, Engineering News Record, Associated General Contractors and Continuing Legal Education of New England.

In recent years, the theme of Mr. Comen’s presentations is how outside counsel and in-house counsel can obtain the greatest benefits for their clients by the effective use of mediation for managing dispute resolution. The latest seminars at which he spoke on this topic were the 2005 Annual Meeting of the CPR Institute for Dispute Resolution, the 2005 Annual Meeting of the American Bar Association program “Mediating the Bet the Business, High Stakes, Legally Complex Cases,” and the 2006 Mealey’s Additional Insured Conference. In 2007, the CPR Institute acknowledged Mr. Comen as a member of a select group of “CPR Heroes” for their extraordinary contributions made to the accomplishments of CPR. less »