Sam Baker Named National Academy of Construction General Counsel

The National Academy of Construction has named Sam E. Baker, Jr., as general counsel for the organization. Baker is senior partner at Oles Morrison Rinker & Baker, LLP, in Seattle, WA. The announcement was made on October 12 during the academy’s annual meeting, which was held in San Diego.

The National Academy of Construction, established in 1999, has had only one general counsel since its founding. James P. Groton, partner at Sutherland, Asbil, & Brennan, served in that role from 2002 until Baker’s election to the post. As general counsel, Baker will now serve on the executive committee of the academy.

Baker, when elected to the academy in 2014, was cited as “the embodiment of the principles of the academy involving a diverse group of construction leaders committed to serve the industry and the nation.”

A former officer with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Baker is a long-time representative for contractors in evaluating and resolving disputes. His success in partnering is nationally recognized. His clients include major construction firms, including participants in the heavy civil, marine, buildings, and industrial sectors of the industry.

Oles Morrison Rinker & Baker, LLP, is a leader in construction law in the Pacific Northwest. The firm represents the oldest and largest construction law practice on the West Coast. Baker was instrumental in expanding its offices to Anchorage, AK, and Oakland, CA. He was the first attorney to serve as director of the Beavers, a heavy engineering construction organization. In 2012, he was selected by the Beavers to receive its coveted Golden Beaver Award for Service and Supply.

Baker earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Washington and a JD degree from the University of Montana. He was inducted into the University of Washington Hall of Fame in 2006, becoming its first lawyer member. Since 2005, he has served on the Charitable Trust of the Beavers.

The National Academy of Construction, established in 1999, is an organization of industry leaders― construction users, engineers, designers, constructors, consultants, attorneys, sureties, editors, and academics―who have made outstanding, life-long contributions to the design, construction, and engineering industries. In addition to being a personal honor, election to the Academy allows members to volunteer their expertise to a variety of organizations, governmental and nongovernmental, for the betterment of the industry as a whole.