Built because subcontractors deserve better than "you signed it"

The story that started this

In 2023, I watched a family friend's electrical contracting business nearly collapse. His company had been running successfully for 15 years—good crews, solid reputation, steady work. Then one contract changed everything.

He signed a subcontract with a general contractor on a large commercial project. The contract was 47 pages of dense legal language. Like most subcontractors, he skimmed it, focused on the scope and price, and signed.

Buried on page 31 was a pay-if-paid clause. Not pay-when-paid—pay-if-paid. The difference? If the owner never pays the GC, the GC has no obligation to pay the subcontractor. Ever.

When the project owner went into bankruptcy, the GC exercised that clause. My friend was left holding $180,000 in completed work that he'd never be paid for. His attorney's response: "You signed it. There's nothing we can do."

The problem with the current options

After that, I started researching. What I found was a broken system:

• Construction attorneys charge $300-500/hour. A thorough contract review takes 2-4 hours. That's $600-2,000 per contract. For a subcontractor bidding 20+ jobs a year, most of which they won't win, that's not sustainable.
• Generic "AI contract review" tools don't understand construction. They might flag indemnification as "risky" but won't tell you that broad-form indemnification is unenforceable in 43 states. They don't know the difference between pay-if-paid and pay-when-paid.
• Most subcontractors just sign. They focus on scope and price, trust the GC, and hope for the best. Until they get burned.

What we built

I spent the last 6 months building something different. SubShield is purpose-built for construction subcontractor agreements. Here's what that means:

• Construction-specific training. Our analysis is trained on AIA documents, ConsensusDocs standards, construction contract patterns, and state-specific construction law.
• State-specific knowledge. Lien laws, indemnification rules, and payment protections vary by state. We analyze your contract against the laws that actually apply to you.
• Plain English explanations. We don't just flag risks—we explain what each clause means, why it matters, and what you can do about it.
• Negotiation guidance. For every risky clause, we provide alternative language that you can propose to the GC.

The investment

Building SubShield wasn't cheap or fast. Over the past 6 months, we've invested:

• $15,000+ in development costs — infrastructure, AI training, security compliance
• Deep understanding of construction contracts — trained on industry-standard contract patterns and GC subcontract terms
• Consultations with construction attorneys — ensuring our analysis reflects real legal standards
• State-by-state research — building a database of lien laws and contractor protections for all 50 states

What's next

We're actively looking for subcontractors to try SubShield and give us feedback. As an early user, you'll help shape the product and get direct access to our team.

If you've ever signed a contract you didn't fully understand, or if you know someone who got burned by a bad clause, I'd love to hear from you.