Skip to Content

P: 310-552-3400

menu
Barbara R. Gadbois Photo

Barbara R. Gadbois

Partner
1880 Century Park East 12th Floor, Los Angeles, California 90067-1621

P: 310-734-3366

E: bgadbois@gibbsgiden.com

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

In 2019 Barbara R. Gadbois was recognized as a leading construction lawyer by the Chambers USA Directory of Leading Lawyers for the twelfth consecutive year. Ms. Gadbois is AV Preeminent® Peer Review Rated by Martindale-Hubbell ®. She was selected for inclusion in the “Southern California Super Lawyers” listing by Los Angeles Magazine in 2004, and 2008 through 2020. Ms. Gadbois was included in the list of 2013 Los Angeles’ Women Leaders in the Law and she is also recognized by Best Lawyers®, and in the Legal 500, U.S. Real estate and Construction section of their publication for the years of 2009 through 2014. Ms. Gadbois has been a partner of the firm since 1993. She concentrates her practice in the development and management of construction projects, including drafting and negotiation of bid and contract documents, procurement issues, public works, competitive bidding requirements, bid protest issues, pre-qualification, project delivery methods, design-build projects, risk allocation in contracts, claims avoidance, and project closeout.

  • PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS
    • State Bar of California
    • Los Angeles County Bar Association
      • Real Property Section and Construction Subsection
    • American Bar Association
      • Public Contract Law and Construction Industry Forum
    • City Attorneys Association of Los Angeles County
  • SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS
    • Speaker, Legislative and Case Law Update for Public Works Construction, California Association of Public Procurement Officials (Jan 2018)
    • Speaker, Public Works Horror Show, State Bar of California 2017 Section Convention (Aug. 2017)
    • Speaker, Introduction to Public Contracting, County Counsel’s Association of California (May 2016) 
    • Speaker, Unchartered Territory for Charter Cities Complying with Prevailing Wage Requirements after SB 7, CAALAC Monthly Luncheon Meeting (Jan. 2015)
    • Speaker, The Seminar Group, Public Construction Law, (December 2014)
    • Speaker, 97th Annual Conference, California Association of Public Procurement Officials: Construction Contracts – Understanding Prevailing Wage Laws and Key Contract Terms (Jan. 2014)
    • Speaker, American Bar Association Forum on the Construction Industry: The Fundamentals of Construction Law (November 2013)
    • League of California Cities, City Attorneys Spring Conference (May 2012)
    • Speaker, “New Normal” in Labor: Living Wage Ordinances, Project Labor Agreements, and Local Hire Programs, City Attorneys Association of Los Angeles County Spring Retreat (March 2012)
    • Speaker, Public Works Legal Update, California Association of Public Purchasing Officers Inc. (2008-2013)
    • Speaker, American Bar Association Forum on the Construction Industry, TIPS Fidelity and Surety Law Committee and Section of Public Contract Law: Turning a Battleship: Design-Build on Federal and State Construction Projects (Jan. 2010)
  • PUBLICATIONS PUBLICATIONS
    • B. Gadbois (Co-Author) California Construction Law, 18th Ed. and 2019 Supplement (Wolters Kluwer Law and Business 2019).
    • B. Gadbois  (Co-Author) Chapter 2, “Bidding Private and Public Work,” California Construction Law, 18th Ed. and 2019 Supplement (Wolters Kluwer Law and Business 2019).
    • B. Gadbois (Co-Author) Chapter 3, “Construction Contracts,” California Construction Law, 18th Ed. and 2019 Supplement (Wolters Kluwer Law and Business 2019).
    • B. Gadbois (Co-Author) Chapter 13, “Prevailing Wage Law,” California Construction Law, 18th Ed. and 2019 Supplement (Wolters Kluwer Law and Business 2019).
    • B. Gadbois (Co-Author), Shake, Rattle, and Roll, “Los Angeles Lawyer,” the Magazine of the Los Angeles County Bar Association (April 2018, Vol. 41, No. 2 at p. 16).
    • B. Gadbois (Co- Author), WARNING to California Contractors – Extended Liability for Prevailing Wage Enforcement Actions; How to Mitigate Your Risk, “Construction Savvy” (May-June 2014 at p. 15).
    • B. Gadbois (Co-Author), Key Construction Contract Provisions, “Construction Savvy” (July-August 2013, at p. 8).
    • B. Gadbois (Co-Author), Turning a Battleship: Design-Build on Federal Construction Projects, “The Construction Lawyer,” Journal of the American Bar Association Forum on the Construction Industry (Winter 2011, Vol. 31, No. 1 at p. 6).
    • B. Gadbois (Co-Author), Acret’s California Public Contract Laws (2012 – 2019 Editions).
    • B. Gadbois (Co-Author), Chapter 2, “Bidding Private and Public Work,” California Construction Law, 17th Ed., Gibbs/Hunt, Kenneth C. Gibbs, Author (Wolters Kluwer Law & Business, Aspen Publisher 2011 – 2018).
    • B. Gadbois (Co-Author), Chapter 2, “Drafting Construction Contracts,” CEB Construction Contracts, Defects, and Litigation Treatise, Cal. CEB (2010 – 2018).
    • B. Gadbois (Co-Author), New Caltrans Race Conscious DBE Program CMAA Southern California Chapter Newsletter (Summer 2009).
    • B. Gadbois, Chapter 2, “Public Contract Bidding and Bid Disputes” and Chapter 3, “Contract Drafting,” California Construction Law (HLK Global Communications, Inc., 2007).
    • B. Gadbois (Co-Author), The Abandonment-of-Contract Doctrine in Construction Disputes, “Los Angeles Lawyer,” the Magazine of the Los Angeles County Bar Association (January 2002, Vol. 24, No. 10 at p. 2); Reprinted in “Legal Handbook for Architects, Engineers and Contractors,” Albert Dib, Editor (2002).
    • B. Gadbois, The New AIA General Conditions: An Overview of Key Changes, California Construction Law Reporter (May 1998, Vol. 8, No. 5 at p. 107).
    • B. Gadbois (Co-Author), Public Contracts and Competitive Bidding, “Probate and Property,” The Magazine of Real Property, Probate and Trust Law Section, American Bar Association (September/October 1997 at p. 35).
  • HONORS AND AWARDS HONORS AND AWARDS
    • AV® Preeminent Peer Review Rated by Martindale-Hubbell (highest rating)
    • Chambers USA Leading Individual, California Construction, 2007-2019
    • The US Legal 500, Recommended Lawyer, United States, 2009-2014, 2019
    • Southern California Super Lawyers, 2004, 2008-2019
    • The Best Lawyers®

PRACTICE AREAS

Education

  • University of California at Los Angeles School of Law (J.D.), Los Angeles, CA, 1985
  • Northwestern University (B.A., Psychology), Evanston, IL, 1982

Bar Admissions

  • U.S. District Courts Central, Eastern, Northern and Southern Districts of California, 1986
  • California Bar No. 120302, 1985
  • U.S. Court of Appeals 9th Circuit, 1985

Certifications

  • LEED Accredited Professional, 2009

Teaching

  • Adjunct Professor of Law, Loyola Law School, Legal Drafting (2006)
  • Loyola Law School, Guest Lecturer on Construction Law (2004-2006)

Representative Clients

  • Alameda Corridor Transportation Authority
  • City of Glendale
  • City of Palm Springs
  • City of Pasadena/Rose Bowl Operating Company
  • McGuire Builders, Inc.
  • The Ojai Valley Inn & Spa