General counsel - New York Region | Suffolk Construction Company
Madison Brackelmanns
General counsel - New York Region | Suffolk Construction Company
What are the projects that you are most proud of working on over the past 12 months?
Since joining Suffolk in 2021, I have worked alongside extraordinary business stakeholders to support a business unit that has tripled its revenue in that time. With that growth came the opportunity to negotiate many substantial construction contracts, which have been and will be key to the region’s (and enterprise’s) continued success, while attending to the broader legal needs of the region. Most importantly, in the last year, many of these projects are now in active construction, and I advise our teams daily to mitigate risk and navigate everyday challenges to ensure each project is a success. There is nothing more fulfilling to me than being able to walk down Fifth Ave or look at the NYC skyline to see a project that was once conceptualised in terms and conditions in an agreement that I negotiated spring to life in the built world.
Based on your experiences in the past year, are there any trends in the legal or business world that you are keeping an eye on that you think other in-house lawyers should be mindful of?
I am sure all of my peers have an eye on significant policy changes coming from this presidential administration, particularly those affecting the construction industry and the impact on construction costs due to increased tariffs. Keeping abreast of these matters requires minute-to-minute attention to remain nimble and ensure that advice remains current.
What are the key things you prioritise to get the most out of your team?
I ensure to foster strong client relationships through deep collaboration with other functions and operations stakeholders, so that we can best serve our internal clients with practical, holistic, business-oriented advice. To be successful in this regard, our team must learn the “sticks and bricks” of construction from our best-in-class construction management staff. By developing deep knowledge of our day-to-day operations in the field, we are able to act as an extension of operations to better identify risks and mitigate exposure in real time.