Harper Heckman

As the Chair of the firm’s Construction Law Practice Group, and the former chair of the State and National Construction Bars, Harper has the knowledge and background clients need to take on virtually any industry issue – from contract negotiation to project claims. He has a long list of representative matters to back it up, with experience counseling clients in a number of sectors across a wide range of concerns.

An Award-Winning Practice

Harper’s legal abilities and knowledge of industry issues have earned him a number of notable recognitions throughout the years. In 2015, Harper was elected as chair of the American Bar Association (ABA) Forum on Construction Law, the largest group of construction lawyers in the world. Harper is one of only three North Carolina lawyers inducted into the American College of Construction Lawyers and one of only five to receive a Band 1 ranking in Construction law from Chambers USA. In 2016, he was inducted into the Legal Elite "Hall of Fame" as the state's category winner for construction law. He was named Greensboro's 2013 and 2018 Lawyer of the Year for Construction Litigation and Greensboro's 2017 Lawyer of the Year for Construction Law by Best Lawyers in America. He is also a past Chair of the North Carolina Bar Association's Construction Law Section and the Contract Documents Division of the ABA's Forum on Construction Law.

Harper has been listed in Best Lawyers in America for Construction Law since 2008, North Carolina Super Lawyers in Construction Law since 2006, Business North Carolina’s Legal Elite since 2005, and The International Who's Who of Construction Lawyers since 2013.

Clients rely on Harper for day-to-day counsel on both routine and complex matters. He is well-versed in a number of legal areas but focuses his practice on construction law.

Harper represents public and private owners, developers, design professionals, contractors, subcontractors, and suppliers. He has tried cases in both state and federal courts and has argued before the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, the North Carolina Supreme Court, and the North Carolina Court of Appeals.

Harper has served as a neutral in more than 150 construction disputes. In addition to being a NCDRC Certified Superior Court Mediator, Harper is a member of the American Arbitration Association’s Large and Complex Construction Panel of Neutrals.  He routinely lectures on a variety of construction-related topics and has authored and co-authored a number of published materials.

Harper is active in both state and national Construction Law Bar Associations and is an adjunct professor of construction law at the University of North Carolina School of Law.

Community & Professional

• National Academy of Distinguished Neutrals
• Fellow, American College of Construction Lawyers 
• University of North Carolina School of Law - Adjunct Professor of Construction Law (2004 - Present)
• American Arbitration Association - Arbitration: Large and Complex Construction Panel
• NCDRC Certified Superior Court Mediator
• North Carolina Bar Association - Construction Law Section (Past Section Chair, Lien Law Rewrite Committee,Co-Chair Specialization Committee)
• American Bar Association (ABA) Forum on Construction Law (Chair; Governing Committee; Contract Documents Division Chair; Publications Committee Chair)

Outside Maynard Nexsen

When not in the office, Harper enjoys teaching construction law to others.  For the past 15 years he has served as an adjunct professor of construction law at the University of North Carolina.

He is a die-hard Tar Heel fan and attends as many football, basketball and baseball games as he can fit in to his schedule.  He and his wife, Kimberly, are the proud parents of three girls, ages 18 to 28.