Seattle Washington Building Expert Directory

Australians Back U.S. Renewables While Opportunities at Home Ebb

March 16, 2020 — Natalia Kniazhevich & Matthew Burgess - Bloomberg
Some of Australia’s biggest funds are pouring money into U.S. clean-energy projects as they butt up against a shortage of green opportunities at home. AustralianSuper, the country’s largest pension fund, recently joined Queensland Investment Corporation in a $1 billion funding round for Generate, a San Francisco-based green-finance company. And Construction and Building Unions Superannuation, another pension giant, made its first U.S. clean-power investments last year. The investments come as the wildfires that charred an area about the size of New York State have put increasing pressure on funds to do more to fight global warming. The problem, investors say, is the Australian government isn’t promoting clean-energy development, leaving the nation without enough sizable projects to back. “At this point the platforms of scale don’t exist in Australia,” said Nik Kemp, head of infrastructure at AustralianSuper. “The size of the U.S. market makes for a much larger market and much better long-term growth opportunities.” Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Natalia Kniazhevich & Matthew Burgess, Bloomberg

Tennessee Civil Engineers Give the State's Infrastructure a "C" Grade

December 05, 2022 — American Society of Civil Engineers
NASHVILLE, TN. — The Tennessee Section of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) released the 2022 Report Card for Tennessee's Infrastructure today, with 13 categories of infrastructure receiving an overall grade of a 'C', the same grade given by the section in its 2016 report. That means Tennessee's infrastructure is in mediocre condition and requires attention, but is a step ahead of the national average of "C-" given in the 2021 Report Card for America's Infrastructure. Tennessee's freight network is strong and plays a major role in the national economy as a key mobility hub and its energy grid has been reliable, allowing families and businesses to operate efficiently. Many of the state's systems are performing at or above national averages; however, a surge in population growth, increasingly severe weather impacts, and insufficient data on the current condition of several infrastructure sectors threaten the long-term viability of the state's overall network. Civil engineers graded aviation (C+), bridges (B), dams (D+), drinking water (C+), energy (C+), inland waterways (C), parks (C+), rail (C), roads (C), solid waste (C+), stormwater (C+), transit (D+), and wastewater (C-). "As one of the most prominent mobility hubs in all of America, infrastructure is the backbone to all we do here in Memphis, and everything we can accomplish throughout the great state of Tennessee," said Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland. "Our airports, roads and bridges keep our economy flowing, drawing more jobs and businesses in the future. The ASCE report is a critical tool for tracking our progress, in addition to highlighting where we could use some work. With more people flocking to Tennessee than ever before, this is an exciting time and our infrastructure networks must be ready to help us capitalize on the opportunity." To view the report card and all five categories, visit https://infrastructurereportcard.org/state-item/tennessee/. ABOUT THE AMERICAN SOCIETY OF CIVIL ENGINEERS Founded in 1852, the American Society of Civil Engineers represents more than 150,000 civil engineers worldwide and is America's oldest national engineering society. ASCE works to raise awareness of the need to maintain and modernize the nation's infrastructure using sustainable and resilient practices, advocates for increasing and optimizing investment in infrastructure, and improve engineering knowledge and competency. For more information, visit www.asce.org or www.infrastructurereportcard.org and follow us on Twitter, @ASCETweets and @ASCEGovRel. Read the court decision
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Quick Note: October 1, 2023 Changes to Florida’s Construction Statutes

November 13, 2023 — David Adelstein - Florida Construction Legal Updates
Effective October 1, 2023, there were changes to Florida’s statutory scheme dealing with construction projects. This includes Florida’s Lien Law. A copy of these changes can be found below which identify additions in blue and deletions with strikethroughs. No different than before, if you have questions or concerns as to your statutory rights on a construction project, do the prudent thing, consult a construction lawyer. A construction lawyer can help you understand changes to the applicable statutory scheme or how the statutory scheme pertains to your rights. This is important because you want to make sure you understand statutory changes that apply to your work and rights. A noteworthy change, bolded in blue below, is that there is now a basis to lien for a contractor performing construction management services “which include scheduling and coordinating construction and preconstruction phases for the construction project, or who provides program management services”:

Fla. Stat. s. 713.01 (8) “Contractor” means a person other than a materialman or laborer who enters into a contract with the owner of real property for improving it, or who takes over from a contractor as so defined the entire remaining work under such contract. The term “contractor” includes an architect, landscape architect, or engineer who improves real property pursuant to a design- build contract authorized by s. 489.103(16). The term also includes a licensed general contractor or building contractor, as those terms are defined in s. 489.105(3)(a) and (b), respectively, who provides construction management services, which include scheduling and coordinating preconstruction and construction phases for the construction project, or who provides program management services, which include schedule control, cost control, and coordinating the provision or procurement of planning, design, and construction for the construction project.

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Reprinted courtesy of David Adelstein, Kirwin Norris, P.A.
Mr. Adelstein may be contacted at dma@kirwinnorris.com

Important New Reporting Requirement for Some Construction Defect Settlements

April 17, 2019 — Ian Williamson - Gordon & Rees Construction Law Blog
In response to a tragic balcony collapse incident where the public later learned the contractor had paid millions to settlement defect cases in the preceding years, the California legislature passed, the state contractor’s license board is now implementing, a public disclosure requirement for certain construction defect claims. The disclosure requirement is triggered by a judgment (which is not a new requirement), an arbitration award, or a settlement of certain construction defect claims. These requirements are codified at California Business & Professions Code sections 7071.20-22. What types of Projects: This requirement applies only if all of the following apply:

A) Residential B) Multi-Family; and C) Rental property

Limitations on Claims – The reporting requirement only applies if all of the following are true:

A) The claim is against a CSLB licensee (not a design professional) acting in the capacity of a contractor; B) The claim is for a structural defect; C) The total claim is valued at $1 million (not including investigation costs); D) SB800 does not apply; E) The action was filed after January 1, 2019; and F) If a lawsuit, the case was designated complex by the courts (which may not apply if only contractor is sued).

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Reprinted courtesy of Ian Williamson, Gordon & Rees
Mr. Williamson may be contacted at igwilliamson@grsm.com

Largest US Dam Removal Stirs Debate Over Coveted West Water

May 11, 2020 — Associated Press - Engineering News-Record
KLAMATH, Calif. (AP) — The second-largest river in California has sustained Native American tribes with plentiful salmon for millennia, provided upstream farmers with irrigation water for generations and served as a haven for retirees who built dream homes along its banks. With so many competing demands, the Klamath River has come to symbolize a larger struggle over the increasingly precious water resources of the U.S. West, and who has the biggest claim to them. Engineering News-Record ENR may be contacted at ENR.com@bnpmedia.com Read the full story... Read the court decision
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Construction Defects and Warranties in Maryland

November 27, 2013 — CDJ STAFF
Nicholas D. Cowie, a partner with Cowie & Mott, P.A., has started a blog focusing on construction defect claims in Maryland condominium complexes. In his first post, he writes about the statutory remedies in Maryland law for condominium owners. He notes that “four separate statutory warranties apply to the sale of condominiums.” He further discusses the varying duration of these warranties and when they come into effect, saying that “associations and unit owners are often incorrectly informed that their construction defect-related problems (such as leaks around windows) are ‘out of warranty’ because the problems did not occur during the warranty period.” Read the court decision
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White and Williams Earns Tier 1 Rankings from U.S. News "Best Law Firms" 2020

December 22, 2019 — White and Williams LLP
White and Williams has achieved national recognition from U.S. News and World Report as a "Best Law Firm" in the practice areas of Insurance Law and Media Law. Our Boston, New York and Philadelphia offices have also been recognized in their respective metropolitan regions in several practice areas. Firms included in the “Best Law Firms” list are recognized for professional excellence with persistently impressive ratings from clients and peers. Achieving a tiered ranking signals a unique combination of quality law practice and breadth of legal experience. National Tier 1 Insurance Law National Tier 3 Media Law Metropolitan Tier 1 Boston Product Liability Litigation – Defendants Delaware Product Liability Litigation – Defendants New Jersey Labor Law – Management Philadelphia Commercial Litigation Insurance Law Medical Malpractice Law – Defendants Personal Injury Litigation – Defendants Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs Metropolitan Tier 2 Boston Insurance Law Delaware Medical Malpractice Law – Defendants New Jersey Employment Law - Management Litigation - Labor & Employment Philadelphia Bet-the-Company Litigation Legal Malpractice Law – Defendants Media Law Real Estate Law Tax Law Trusts & Estates Law Metropolitan Tier 3 New York City Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law Philadelphia Appellate Practice Construction Law First Amendment Law Litigation – Construction Litigation – Labor & Employment Patent Law Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of White and Williams LLP

Condominium's Agent Owes No Duty to Injured Apartment Owner

August 28, 2023 — Tred R. Eyerly - Insurance Law Hawaii
The court granted the agent's motion to dismiss claims asserted by a condominium owner's claim for injuries due to a fire in his unit. Great Am. Allliance Ins. Co. v. Village Gardens Homeowners Association, 2023 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 102900 (C.D. Calif. June 12, 2023). Village Gardens' agent, Roy Palacios Insurance Company, obtained umbrella and excess policies from Great American for apartment buildings located on the property. In obtaining the policies, Village Gardens represented to Great American through Palacios that the property's roof, HVAC, plumbing and electrical systems had been updated. On Febaruary 16, 2019, the apartment in which Vicencio Flores resided caught fire, causing him to suffer severe burns. Flores alleged that the fire was caused by Village Gardens' "improper construction, use of poor construction materials and negligent maintenance of the property." Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Tred R. Eyerly, Damon Key Leong Kupchak Hastert
Mr. Eyerly may be contacted at te@hawaiilawyer.com

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