W. Alexander Burnett

Alex Burnett focuses his practice on construction litigation, bankruptcy & creditors' rights, real estate litigation, including landlord/tenant matters, as well as general commercial litigation.

Alex previously served as chair of the Virginia Bar Association's Construction and Public Contracts Law Section. He serves a broad spectrum of clients involved in the construction industry, including banks, owners, general contractors, subcontractors and suppliers. He actively participates in client’s construction projects by drafting or revising contracts, advising clients of their rights throughout a project, and regularly litigating and arbitrating on behalf of clients, including prosecuting and defending mechanic’s liens, mechanic’s lien enforcement, payment and performance bond claims.

In his bankruptcy practice, he advises and represents all types of creditors including but not limited to secured and unsecured creditors, financial institutions, construction contractors, landlords, tenants, suppliers, owners and other types of parties in all types of bankruptcy cases, including Chapter 7, 11 and 13 cases. Recently, he has represented defendants in adversary proceedings, such as preference and fraudulent conveyance actions, lien strips, and violations of the automatic stay, bringing a litigator's perspective and experience to those cases. He has moved and obtained relief from the automatic stay for creditors. He has responded to subpoenas and other discovery. He has objected to a debtor’s discharge, and filed many proofs of claim and plan objections.

He is licensed and regularly practices in the U.S. Bankruptcy Courts and U.S. District Courts for the Eastern and Western Districts of Virginia. In addition, he is registered with ECF (Electronic Case Filing) for purposes of filing proofs of claim and requests for notices in the U.S. Bankruptcy Courts for the Eastern District of New York, Maryland and Delaware.

Alex also maintains an active real estate litigation practice where he advises both landlords and tenants regarding their rights under leases and in lease disputes as well as property owners and homeowners’ associations in disputes over covenants.  He also represents both buyers and sellers when disputes arise over the sale of property and banks, trustees and owners in boundary and title disputes.

Alex has been listed as a "Rising Star" in General Litigation and Construction Litigation (2009, 2011-2019) and as a "Super Lawyer" in Construction Litigation (2020-present) by Virginia Super Lawyers magazine. He has also been named among Virginia's "Legal Elite" by Virginia Business magazine (2011-present) and listed in The Best Lawyers in America® for Construction Law (2017-present), Commercial Litigation (2019-present), Litigation - Construction (2023-present). Martindale-Hubbell has rated Alex an AV attorney, its highest rating available. Active in community organizations as well as legal, Alex is vice president of his homeowner’s association and an active volunteer in the firm's pro bono efforts through Central Virginia Legal Aid Society’s Justice Server, the Legal Aid Housing program and the Virginia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.

Prior to joining Williams Mullen, Alex served as a law clerk to The Honorable Claude M. Hilton, Chief Judge of the U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Virginia, Alexandria Division.  He is a member of the Virginia State Bar and the Richmond Bar Association.

Alex earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and his Juris Doctor degree, cum laude, from the University of Richmond School of Law.  While in law school, he served as editor-in-chief of the University of Richmond Law Review and authored the note, “Dusenbery v. United States: Setting the Standard for Adequate Notice,” 37 University of Richmond Law Review 613 (2003).