Bruce H. Schoumacher

1966-1967 Associate, Luebs, Tracy & Huebner, Grand Island, NE

1967-1971 U. S. Air Force Special Agent, Office of Special Investigations. Second Lieutenant to Captain.

1971-1989 Associate to Partner, McDermott, Will & Emery, Chicago, IL

1989 -2020    Shareholder/Attorney, Querrey & Harrow, Ltd., Chicago, IL

2021 –             Of Counsel, Querrey & Harrow, Ltd., Chicago, IL

Retired Dec. 31, 2020, from Querrey & Harrow, Ltd.; now Of Counsel with the firm.   Started with McDermott. Will & Emery in 1971 as an anti-trust lawyer and gradually transitioned into construction law, primarily representing architects and  engineers.  Also, developed experience in products liability and insurance law.  Moved to Querrey & Harrow, Ltd., in 1989 where continued to represent architects, engineers and manufacturers.  Practice eventually changed to representing primarily contractors.

• Member, Nebraska State Bar Association (inactive).
• Member, Illinois State Bar Association (Construction Law. former Section Council member and Chair; Insurance Law Section Council, 1986-1991; Chair, Standing Committee on Membership and Bar Activities, 1988-1989; Special Committee on Computerized Legal Research, 1986-87; Ad Hoc Committee on Large Law Firms, 1993-1997; Special Committee on Construction Law, 2008-2010.
• Fellow, Illinois Bar Foundation.
• Member, Chicago Bar Association (Chair, Federal Civil Procedure Committee, 1982-1983).
• Member, Defense Research Institute
• Member, Illinois Association of Defense Trial Counsel (Insurance Law Committee, 2006-present; Commercial Litigation Committee, former member and chair).
• Member, Society of Illinois Construction Attorneys (President, 2010-2012).
• Member, The Lawyers Club of Chicago.
• Director, Chicago Building Congress, 1985-2019 (Vice-President, 1989-1991, Secretary, 1991-2019 and Program Chairman, 1986-1991).
• Member, Board of Advisors, Construction Consultant, 1987-1989.

ABA Forum Committee on the Construction Industry, American Institute of Architects, Society of Illinois Construction Attorneys

• Engineers and the Law: An Overview (Van Nostrand Reinhold Company, Inc., 1986).
• Contributing Author, Construction Law (Matthew Bender & Company, Inc., 1986).
• Co-Author, Successful Business Plans for Architects (McGraw-Hill, Inc., 1992).
• Contributing Author, Construction Law Handbook (Aspen Law & Business, (1999).
• Contributing Author, Construction Business Handbook (Aspen Publishers, Inc., 2004).
• Contributing Author, Construction Law Handbook, Third Edition, (Aspen Publishing, 2018).
• Contributing Author, Construction Law, (ABA Publishing, 2009).
• Contributing Author, Construction Law: Transactional Considerations (Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education, 2010).
• Contributing Author, Construction Dispute Litigation (Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education, 2013).
• “Contract Awards and Contract Administration,” Quality Assurance: A National Commitment, American Society of Civil Engineers (1997).
• Co-Author, “A New Remedy: Product Recall,” Loyola University Consumer Reporter (Fall 1988).
• Has also contributed numerous articles to Consulting/Specifying Engineer, Construction Specifier, Focus, Construction Consultant, Commercial Builder/Architect, and other publications.
• Legal Columnist, Business Development for Architecture, Engineering and Construction Markets, 2013-14.
• Seminar Moderator and Speaker, Illinois Mechanics Lien Law, presented by Lorman Education Services, over thirty-five times, 1998-2013.
• Speaker, Mealey’s Wrap Insurance Conference, Las Vegas, 2008.
• Illinois Construction Lien Law: Current Issues and Review, webinar presented for Lorman Education Services, 2009.
• Hot Topics in Today’s Construction World — What’s New in 2010, presented by the Illinois State Bar Association, Bloomington and Chicago 2010.
• Speaker, Perfecting Mechanics Liens on Private Property, Mechanics Liens and Construction Claims Seminar, presented by the Illinois State Bar Association, Carbondale, 2010.
• Moderator, Construction Professional Service Agreements, Strafford Webinars, 2013.
• Moderator and Speaker, Everything a Construction Player Should Know About Insurance in Illinois, presented by Lorman Education Services, 2013.
• Speaker, Insurance and Surety Bond Issues for Construction Projects, presented by the Illinois State Bar Association, DeKalb and Chicago (2013).

• State of Nebraska, 1966.
• State of Illinois, 1971.
• U.S. District Court (Neb, N.D. III, and E.D. Wis), 1966, 1971, and 1995.
• U.S. Court of Appeals (7th Cir.), 1979.
• U.S. Supreme Court, 1982.
• U.S. Court of Federal Claims, 1986.

• Captain; Special Agent, Office of Special Investigations, U.S. Air Force, 1967-71 (Bronze Star Medal;Air Force Commendation Medal; Republic of Viet Nam Armed Forces Honor Medal, First Class).