Fairfield Connecticut Building Expert Directory

South African Building Industry in Line for More State Support

November 08, 2021 — Prinesha Naidoo - Bloomberg
South Africa’s government is planning more measures to bolster its ailing building industry after banning the use of imported cement on state construction projects. “Government is undertaking research across a range of construction-related products where there appears to be significant potential for localization,” Stephen Hanival, chief economist at the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition, said in an emailed response to questions. “Further announcements will be made in due course.” The country’s preferential procurement policy framework enables the department to designate sectors for localization in line with national development and industrial policy goals. While the government has pursued localization since 2014, it has become more strategic since the advent of the pandemic with business, government and labor groups agreeing on an initial list of 42 products and sub-sectors that should be prioritized, Hanival said. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Prinesha Naidoo, Bloomberg

Missouri Construction Company Sues Carpenter Union for Threatening Behavior

February 10, 2014 — Beverley BevenFlorez-CDJ STAFF
According to KMOV News, Raineri Construction Company in Missouri filed suit against the Local Carpenters’ District Council claiming employees had been “stalked and threatened” by the union. However, the Carpenters Union “denies the allegations” and said “it has the right to protest against a company that doesn’t always meet the union standards for pay and benefits.” Tony Raineri, one of the construction company’s executives, said to KMOV News: “For me it wasn’t such a big deal until they started making threats of bodily harm, started following me and my wife to our home, started following my employees to their homes.” KMOV News reported that a “union representative told News 4’s Craig Cheatham that no one acting on behalf of the Carpenters Union ever threatened, harassed or stalked Raineri, his employees or their clients.” Read the court decision
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Construction Defects Survey Results Show that Warranty Laws Should be Strengthened for Homeowners & Condominium Associations

March 29, 2017 — Nicholas D. Cowie - Maryland Condo Construction Defect Law Blog
The Community Associations Institute (“CAI”) recently partnered with its members and industry stakeholders to create a survey about construction deficiencies to learn how they impact homeowners and condominium associations. Click here to view the Construction Defects Report containing the details of the responses to the survey. Click here to see a video presentation summarizing the results of the Construction Defects Survey. This Community Associations Institute (“CAI”) Construction Defects Report demonstrates that many community associations do not discover construction deficiencies until after warranties have expired and/or fail to take the necessary actions to preserve their claims before the statutes of limitations runs. As a result, many homeowners and Condominium associations ended up using association funds to correct builder construction defects and damages caused thereby. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Nicholas D. Cowie, Cowie & Mott
Mr. Cowie may be contacted at ndc@cowiemott.com

Fast-Moving Isaias Dishes Out Disruption in the Mid-Atlantic, Northeast

August 24, 2020 — Jim Parsons - Engineering News-Record
Far from the most powerful storm to strike the Eastern Seaboard, Hurricane Isaias nevertheless proved disruptive enough to rival some infrastructure impacts from Superstorm Sandy in 2012 while also raising concerns about the potential of additional doses of destruction arriving in the coming months. Jim Parsons, Engineering News-Record ENR may be contacted at ENR.com@bnpmedia.com Read the full story... Read the court decision
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Protect Workers From Falls: A Leading Cause of Death

August 14, 2018 — Mark McGhiey - Construction Executive
One of the leading causes of death for construction workers is falls from elevated surfaces, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. In 2016, these accidents accounted for more than 30 percent of all construction fatalities. The top four causes of worker deaths (excluding highway collisions) in the private sector construction industry are:

falls: 384 (38.7%);
struck by object: 93 (9.4 percent);
electrocutions: 82 (8.3 percent); and
caught-in/between:1 72 (7.3 percent).

One of the most common — and costly — causes of claims occur when construction workers fall from elevated surfaces. These accidents represent more than 30 percent of all construction claim payments. Reprinted courtesy of Mark McGhiey, Construction Executive, a publication of Associated Builders and Contractors. All rights reserved. Read the court decision
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Part I: Key Provisions of School Facility Construction & Design Contracts

May 16, 2018 — David R. Cook Jr. - Autry, Hall & Cook, LLP
We all expect our school construction projects will go smoothly, on time and under budget. But despite our best efforts, some projects will encounter speed bumps, detours or outright roadblocks. While there are many precautions a school facility manager may take, one of the best precautions is to have solid construction and design contracts. A good contract will account for the known risks and specify an outcome in favor of the school authority. School construction risks can be categorized into a few categories: performance risk, time risk, cost risk and political risk. Some risks are typical to all construction projects, while others are peculiar to the unique needs of school authorities. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of David R. Cook Jr., Autry, Hall & Cook, LLP
Mr. Cook may be contacted at cook@ahclaw.com

When Must a New York Insurer Turn Over a Copy of the Policy?

December 23, 2023 — Nicholas P. Hurzeler - Lewis Brisbois
New York, N.Y. (December 7, 2023) - It has long been the rule in New York that a defendant should disclose all insurance policies that might provide coverage to the plaintiff for an underlying claim. McKiernan v Vaccaro, 168 AD3d 827 [2d Dept 2019]; Keenan v Harbor View Health & Beauty Spa, 205 AD2d 589 [2d Dept 1994]. This rule applies to all tort cases, including motor vehicle; however, it does not apply to lawsuits seeking to recover No Fault expenses (see, CPLR 3101(f)(5)). Frequently, a plaintiff will demand a copy of the policy even when the claim is still pre-suit. This raises the question of when the insurer must comply with this specific type of discovery demand in New York. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Nicholas P. Hurzeler, Lewis Brisbois
Mr. Hurzeler may be contacted at Nicholas.Hurzeler@lewisbrisbois.com

Construction Litigation Roundup: “Stop - In the Name of the Law!”

August 07, 2023 — Daniel Lund III - Lexology
In a 5-4 decision, the United States Supreme Court settled a split among the federal appellate circuits on whether appeal of a district court refusal to compel arbitration stays the underlying litigation in the district court. Having been denied relief by the district court on its motion to compel arbitration, plaintiff filed an interlocutory appeal to the Ninth Circuit under the Federal Arbitration Act, 9 U. S. C. §16(a), which authorizes an interlocutory appeal from the denial of a motion to compel arbitration. Plaintiff asked the district court to stay its proceedings pending resolution of the interlocutory appeal. The district court refused, and the Ninth Circuit also declined to stay the lower court proceedings pending appeal. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Daniel Lund III, Phelps
Mr. Lund may be contacted at daniel.lund@phelps.com

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