Fairfield Connecticut Building Expert Directory

Are Housing Prices Poised to Fall in Denver?

December 10, 2015 — Beverley BevenFlorez-CDJ STAFF
Denver, Dallas, and Houston’s housing markets are rising too quickly and will soon hit “’bubble territory’” according to a housing market index by Florida Atlantic University and Florida International University, reported the Denver Business Journal. "There is about a 70 percent chance that renters in Denver will get more wealth on average than buyers," Ken Johnson, a real estate economist at the university in Boca Raton, Florida, told the Denver Post. Read the court decision
Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of

Texas Walks the Line on When the Duty to Preserve Evidence at a Fire Scene Arises

October 14, 2019 — Lian Skaf - The Subrogation Strategist
The extent to which a loss scene can be altered before adversaries can legitimately cry spoliation has long been a mysterious battleground in the world of subrogation. In the case of In re Xterra Constr., LLC, No. 10-16-00420-CV, 2019 Tex. App. LEXIS 3927 (Tex. App. – Waco, May 15, 2019), the Court of Appeals of Texas, Tenth District, addressed the question of when a party has a duty to preserve evidence. The court found that the trial court abused its discretion in imposing sanctions on the defendants for the spoliation of evidence as the evidence at issue was already gone by the time the defendants knew or reasonably should have known there was a substantial chance a claim would be filed against them. In this matter, Xterra Construction, LLC, Venturi Capital, Inc. d/b/a Artisan Cabinets and Keith D. Richbourg (collectively, Xterra) leased a commercial space from building owners Daniel Hull and William H. Beazley, Jr. (collectively, Hull) to be used as a woodworking and cabinet making warehouse. On October 18, 2014, there was a fire at the warehouse. By October 20, 2014, Xterra informed its insurance carrier, Cincinnati Insurances Companies (“Cincinnati”) of the loss and Cincinnati’s adjuster, Leann Williams (Williams), met with Keith D. Richbourg (Richbourg) at the site. Williams also hired expert Jim Reil (Reil) to inspect the fire scene to perform a cause and origin investigation. The next day, Williams informed Hull’s attorney that Reil would inspect the scene on October 23, 2014. Hulls attorney, however, did not send anyone to the scene to participate in the inspection. Read the court decision
Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Lian Skaf, White and Williams LLP
Mr. Skaf may be contacted at skafl@whiteandwilliams.com

House Passes $25B Water Resources Development Bill

June 27, 2022 — Tom Ichniowski - Engineering News-Record
A key federal infrastructure bill advanced with approval in the House of a measure providing $25.3 billion to help finance 22 Army Corps of Engineers storm and flood protection, ecological restoration, harbor dredging and other projects around the country. Reprinted courtesy of Tom Ichniowski, Engineering News-Record Mr. Ichniowski may be contacted at ichniowskit@enr.com Read the full story... Read the court decision
Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of

Georgia Passes Solar CUVA Bill

April 20, 2017 — David R. Cook Jr. - Autry, Hanrahan, Hall & Cook, LLP
Georgia House Bill 238 authorizes the withdrawal of property from a conservation use covenant for purposes of developing a solar generation plant. Before the law was passed, subject to certain limited exceptions, properties under a conservation use covenant generally could not be developed without breaching the covenant. The new law permits the removal of a portion of the property to be used for solar development without breaching the covenant for the rest of the property. Read the court decision
Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of David R. Cook, Autry, Hanrahan, Hall & Cook, LLP
Mr. Cook may be contacted at cook@ahclaw.com

Mediation in the Zero Sum World of Construction

September 26, 2022 — Christopher G. Hill - Construction Law Musings
Construction is a zero sum game. What do I mean by that? I mean that even where you, a construction professional with a great construction lawyer, have reviewed and edited a subcontract presented to you or provided a well-drafted contract to the other party that contains an attorney fees provision, every dollar that you spend on litigation is a dollar less of profit. Couple the fact that no construction company can or should bid or negotiate work with an eye toward litigation (aside from having a well written contract that will be enforced to the letter here in Virginia). Particularly on “low bid” type projects, contractors and subcontractors cannot “pad” their bids to take into account the possibility of attorney fees, arbitration, or litigation. Furthermore, the loss of productivity when your “back office” personnel are tied up dealing with discovery, phone calls, and other incidents of litigation that do nothing but rehash a bad project and increase the expense sap money from the bottom line. While the possibility of a judgment including attorney fees may soften this blow, you are still out the cash. All of this said, if you are in commercial construction for any significant period of time disputes will arise and I have discussed the process in some detail at other places here at Construction Law Musings. As a construction litigator, I am fully aware of this fact of life. Efficient management of these disputes is key, particularly when they escalate to the point where some form of outside “help” (read arbitrator or judge) is necessary. Read the court decision
Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of The Law Office of Christopher G. Hill
Mr. Hill may be contacted at chrisghill@constructionlawva.com

Ohio Condo Owners Sue Builder, Alleging Construction Defects

September 10, 2014 — Beverley BevenFlorez-CDJ STAFF
Seventy-four condominium owners that reside in the Villas at Northstar in Westerville, Ohio, have sued Romanelli & Hughes, the builder, for alleged construction issues that led to water intrusion, according to The Columbus Dispatch. “There have been noted deficiencies at every building out there, with both the roofs and wall systems,” Kevin Fields, a partner at Kasman & Cusimano, the firm that is representing the condo owners, told The Columbus Dispatch. “There’s been severe water infiltration through the walls, which has caused underlying damage, and various roof leaks and roofs not properly secured — in essence, sliding off the buildings.” Counsel for the builder, Gabe Roehrenbeck, a partner with Thompson Hines law firm, stated that “he could not comment on the specifics of the case…because he has not had time to analyze it.” But he issued the statement, “Romanelli & Hughes is an award-winning builder that over the course of more than 40 years has built a reputation for client service and satisfaction.” Construction defects listed in the suit include “failure to install or improper installation of flashing, ice shields, roofing paper, shingles, control joints in stucco and weather-resistant barriers.” Read the court decision
Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of

Quick Note: Do Your Homework When it Comes to Selecting Your Arbitrator

July 26, 2017 — David Adelstein - Florida Construction Legal Updates
Many construction contracts contain arbitration provisions. Instead of litigating a dispute arising out of the contract, the parties will arbitrate the dispute per the arbitration provision. There are advantages to arbitration and certain disputes bode well for arbitration. The key is you want to make sure you select the RIGHT arbitrator or arbitrators. Do your homework regarding the arbitrator list presented to you by, say, the American Arbitration Association. Strike out those on the list that either do not have the requisite experience you need to decide the dispute or you believe they are not going to be impartial. For instance, if you want an arbitrator that you think will specifically follow the letter of the law or the precise terms of a contract, select those on the list that meet this requirement; strike out others that do not. The same philosophy would apply if you want an arbitrator to have specific factual knowledge or a factual understanding regarding a driving issue in the dispute. Do not neglect the homework required to select –or try to select — the arbitrator you believe is the most qualified to understand the issues. Now, why is this important? It is important because you need to arbitrate a dispute with the understanding that the arbitrator’s award (decision) is FINAL. There are no appellate rights. None. Vacating an arbitrator’s award is very challenging and the bases to vacate an award are limited and, most of the time, will NOT apply. Read the court decision
Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of David Adelstein, Florida Construction Legal Updates
Mr. Adelstein may be contacted at Dadelstein@gmail.com

Wow! A Mechanic’s Lien Bill That Helps Subcontractors and Suppliers

March 05, 2015 — Christopher G. Hill – Construction Law Musings
You know how I’ve stated on many occasions that the contract is king here in Virginia? You know how that included contractual provisions waiving mechanic’s lien rights for subcontractors and suppliers? You know how I thought that the General Assembly would not do anything to make mechanic’s liens in Virginia easier to prosecute? Well, it seems, at least for waivers of mechanic’s lien rights by subcontractors and suppliers (more about general contractors later) I was wrong. This General Assembly session, the Senate introduced a bill, that has now passed both houses as of February 25, 2015, that adds language to Virginia Code Section 43-3 that effectively nullifies any contractual waiver of lien rights prior to any work having been performed by any tier of construction company aside from general contractors. Read the court decision
Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Christopher G. Hill, Law Office of Christopher G. Hill, PC
Mr. Hill may be contacted at chrisghill@constructionlawva.com

FAIRFIELD CONNECTICUT BUILDING EXPERT DIRECTORY AND CAPABILITIES