Seattle Washington Building Expert Directory

Attorneys’ Fees Are Available in Arizona Eviction Actions

December 19, 2018 — Ben Reeves - Snell & Wilmer Real Estate Litigation Blog
The Arizona Court of Appeals recently held that any successful plaintiff in a forcible detainer action (i.e., an eviction action) may recover an award of its attorneys’ fees and costs incurred at trial under A.R.S. § 12-1178(A). See Bank of New York v. Dodev, 1 CA-CV 17-0652 (Ct. App. Nov. 20, 2018). Prior to this decision, caselaw held that fees were only awardable in actions arising out of the termination of a residential lease. RREEF Mgmt. Co. v. Camex Prods., Inc., 190 Ariz. 75, 945 P.2d 386 (Ct. App. 1997). Changes to the statute, however, rendered the prior caselaw obsolete. Although the holding in Dodev is important, the facts of the case are truly astonishing…and somewhat depressing. The Facts In Dodev, Ivaylo Dodev (Dodev) defaulted on his home loan in 2008. He nevertheless “succeeded in remaining on the [p]roperty by filing numerous legal actions that delayed the foreclosure and subsequent trustee’s sale” at least through the date of the opinion—a ten (10) year period. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Ben Reeves, Snell & Wilmer
Mr. Reeves may be contacted at breeves@swlaw.com

Autovol’s Affordable Housing Project with Robotic Automation

February 15, 2021 — Aarni Heiskanen - AEC Business
Just over two years since breaking ground, Autovol is now using automation in new ways as it nears completion of its first major affordable housing project. The project, Virginia Street Studios, will make high-quality apartment homes more affordable to seniors in San Jose, one of America’s 10 most expensive cities. The 400,000 square foot Autovol factory has now successfully deployed its unique combination of construction trades and robotic automation. Autovol has hired more than 100 employees, which the company calls Solutioneers. Led by CEO Rick Murdock and co-developed by The Pacific Companies, Autovol is pioneering a new kind of modular construction. Robotics lead into the future of housing “Automation and robotics will lead the world into the future of housing,” Murdock said. “What we’re doing hasn’t been attempted before. Our investors and Solutioneers leaned in with lots of confidence, and now we’re seeing great results that prove they were right.” Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Aarni Heiskanen, AEC Business
Mr. Heiskanen may be contacted at aec-business@aepartners.fi

Phillips & Jordan Awarded $176M Everglades Restoration Contract

March 01, 2021 — Thomas F. Armistead - Engineering News-Record
Construction of the next major project for the Everglades Agricultural Area Reservoir south of Lake Okeechobee is set to begin in April following the South Florida Water Management District's award of a $175.8-million lump-sum contract to Phillips and Jordan Inc. Reprinted courtesy of Thomas F. Armistead, Engineering News-Record ENR may be contacted at ENR.com@bnpmedia.com Read the full story... Read the court decision
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Nomos LLP Partner Garret Murai Recognized by Super Lawyers

July 08, 2024 — Garret Murai - California Construction Law Blog
Nomos LLP Partner Garret Murai has been recognized as a 2024 Northern California Super Lawyers honoree in the area of Construction Litigation. This is the eleventh consecutive year that he has been recognized by Super Lawyers. Super Lawyers, an annual listing of outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and personal achievement, is limited to no more than five percent (5%) of lawyers in a state who are selected through a multiphase process that includes a statewide survey of lawyers, independent research evaluation and peer reviews by practice area. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Garret Murai, Nomos LLP
Mr. Murai may be contacted at gmurai@nomosllp.com

Just How Climate-Friendly Are Timber Buildings? It’s Complicated

February 12, 2024 — Eric Roston - Bloomberg
This article is part of the Bloomberg Green series Timber Town, which looks at the global rise of timber as a low-carbon building material. The number of people living in urban areas around the world will swell by upwards of 2 billion over the next three decades. Many of those people will need new homes. But building those with conventional materials would unleash a gusher of carbon dioxide: Concrete, steel, glass and bricks for construction make up a combined 9% of global CO2 emissions, according to research by the United Nations Environment Program. Enter engineered wood, a seemingly no-brainer solution. Mass timber is not the typical lumber that has structured single-family houses in North America for decades. The wood components are strong enough to hold up an office tower or apartment block, and building with them is thought to emit much less CO2 than using standard materials. And since wood is about 50% carbon, the material itself even stores a little carbon, to boot. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Eric Roston, Bloomberg

Allegations Confirm Duty to Defend Construction Defect Claims

June 11, 2014 — Tred R. Eyerly – Insurance Law Hawaii
Relying upon the same case cited by the Hawaii Supreme Court in its seminal decision on duty to defend, the federal district court determined the allegations sufficiently established a duty to defend construction defect claims. Voeller Constr. v. Southern-Owners Ins. Co., 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 61862 (M. D. Fla. May 5, 2014). The Bay Harbor Clearwater Condominium Association, Inc. sued Voeller Construction for statutory breach of warranty and building code violations which allegedly caused damage to the condominium structure. The complaint alleged that the damage was unknown to the unit owners at the time they purchased their units. The project was completed in 2007. Expert reports attached to the complaint listed July 7, 2010, as the earliest date of discovery of the damage to the property. The CGL policies were effective from January 24, 2007 to May 9, 2009. Therefore, the insurer argued there was no coverage because the alleged "property damage" was discovered for more than one year after the policies expired. The court determined there was a duty to defend. Citing Trizec Props., Inc. v. Biltmore Constr. Co., 767 F.2d 810 (11th Cir. 1985), the court noted that if the complaint alleged facts which created potential coverage under the policy, the duty to defend was triggered. The Hawaii Supreme Court relied on Trizec and made the same ruling in Dairy Road Partners v. Island Ins Co., Ltd., 92 Haw. 398, 412, 992 P.2d 93, 107 (2000). Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Tred R. Eyerly, Insurance Law Hawaii
Mr. Eyerly may be contacted at te@hawaiilawyer.com

A Primer on Suspension and Debarment for Federal Construction Projects

August 10, 2020 — Hal J. Perloff - Construction Executive
We’ve all heard the expression that those who deal with the government must turn square corners. This is because the government has a broad array of tools at its disposal to motivate, coax and cajole contractors and federal grant recipients to play by the rules. Those tools include harsh measures such as criminal prosecution and civil false claims act enforcement on the one hand and poor CPARS ratings on the other. A seemingly less severe administrative option available to the government is suspension and debarment. However, any entity that has been suspended or debarred knows that these measures can prove harsh and disruptive. While the numbers of suspensions and debarments have declined from the all-time high in 2011, there is still significant activity. In its FY 2018 report, the Interagency Suspension and Debarment Committee reported 2444 referrals, 480 suspensions, 1542 proposed debarments and 1334 debarments. The number of referrals for suspension and debarment in FY 2018 is almost exactly the same as the number of GAO bid protests filed that year. WHAT IS SUSPENSION AND DEBARMENT? Suspension and debarment are the government’s tools to avoid entities it views as a high risk for poor performance, fraud, waste and abuse. Suspension and debarment preclude a business entity or individual from contracting with the government or from receiving grants, loans, loan guarantees or other forms of assistance from the government. A suspension is a temporary exclusion when the government determines immediate action is necessary pending the completion of an investigation or legal proceeding. A debarment is an exclusion for a defined, reasonable period of time—often three years. Reprinted courtesy of Hal J. Perloff, Construction Executive, a publication of Associated Builders and Contractors. All rights reserved. Read the court decision
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Mr. Perloff may be contacted at hal.perloff@huschblackwell.com

Bert Hummel Appointed Vice Chair of State Bar of Georgia Bench & Bar Committee

October 24, 2021 — Bert Hummel - Lewis Brisbois
Atlanta, Ga. (October 4, 2021) – Atlanta Partner Bert Hummel was recently named Vice Chair of the State Bar of Georgia's Bench & Bar Committee for the 2021-2022 year. The Bench & Bar Committee identifies and facilitates solutions to issues of mutual interest between State judges and Georgia lawyers for the benefit of the bench, the bar and the public. It also oversees the annual Justice Thomas O. Marshall Professionalism Award, which honors one lawyer and one judge who have demonstrated the highest professional conduct and paramount reputation for professionalism. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Bert Hummel, Lewis Brisbois
Mr. Hummel may be contacted at Bert.Hummel@lewisbrisbois.com

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