Eric G. Korphage

For 20 years, Eric Korphage has focused his commercial litigation practice on surety and construction law.  Eric represents surety companies, construction contractors and project owners in a wide variety of matters and disputes. His experience includes payment and performance bond, construction defect and trust fund violation claims, as well as contractual disputes and mechanic’s liens. Clients value Eric’s ability to provide successful and cost-effective representation. Eric is admitted in Maryland, the District of Columbia, and Virginia and has handled matters in a number of other jurisdictions.

Eric’s practice is not limited to construction and surety claims.  Eric drafts and revises contracts, takeover agreements and financing agreements, as well as represents creditors, including in bankruptcy and insolvency proceedings.   Eric also advises businesses and receivers in cases alleging fraud and fraudulent conveyances, as well as fidelity claims.  These receivership cases often involve a scheme to defraud, resulting in a failed business and/or individuals defrauded of their assets. 

A frequent author of legal publications, Eric is an author of the Maryland Construction Law Deskbook, Chapter on Surety Law (MSBA 3ed. 2023), and the American Bar’s Association’s The Law of Performance Bonds, Chapter on Surety Defenses (ABA 2018). 

Prior to entering private practice, Eric worked in-house as an attorney at Travelers and served as a judicial law clerk for the Appellate Court of Maryland (C.J. Joseph F. Murphy, Jr.) and the Circuit Court for Anne Arundel County, Maryland.

• Summary judgment entered in favor of surety client, in multi-million dollar claim, concluding that the surety was completely discharged from liability due to the obligee’s unilateral performance of the bonded contract (Schuff Steel Co. v. Bosworth Steel Erectors, 2022 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 176417 (D. D.C. 2022)
• Successfully prosecuted client receiver’s fraudulent conveyance claims in one-week trial in a receivership proceeding/Ponzi scheme in Maryland State Court resulting in $700,000 judgment in favor of client that led to numerous successful settlements and turned course of receivership
• Summary judgment entered in favor of surety clients on indemnity and collateral demand claims resulting in $5.7+ million recovery in Maryland State Court proceeding; court rejected defendants’ contentions that sureties failed to act in good faith
• Summary judgment entered in favor of surety client affirmed by Court of Special Appeals of Maryland in case alleging surety aided and abetted alleged fraud and demanding $14 million in compensatory damages, plus punitive damages from surety
• Summary judgment entered in favor of surety client on indemnity claim against contractor and established right of surety to pursue claims under the Maryland Construction Trust Fund Statute (Argonaut Ins. Co. v. Wolverine Construction, Inc., et al., 976 F. Supp. 2d 646 (D. Md. 2013)
• Summary judgment entered in favor of surety and against obligee general contractor which asserted defense of setoff (United States District Court, Eastern District of Virginia)