Seattle Washington Building Expert Directory

Illinois Court Addresses Coverage Owed For Subcontractor’s Defective Work

May 06, 2019 — Brian Bassett - TLSS Insurance Law Blog
In Acuity Ins. Co. v. 950 W. Huron Condo. Assoc’n, 2019 IL App (1st) 180743, the Illinois Court of Appeals held that a claim against a subcontractor for damage caused to property outside the scope of its work satisfied the insuring agreement of a CGL policy. The condominium association for the building located at 950 West Huron Street in Chicago, Illinois (“the Association”), sued its general contractor and construction manager Belgravia Group, Ltd., and Belgravia Construction Corporation (collectively “Belgravia”). The Association sought to recover for alleged defects from Belgravia’s unworkmanlike construction of the building that permitted water to permeate and cause damage. In the Association’s complaint, it alleged that in June 2002, after the Association took possession of the building but prior to the completion of construction, Belgravia became aware of numerous conditions and defects, including extensive water infiltration of the building. After discussing the issues with Belgravia, the Association claimed that Belgravia retained contractors to provide cosmetic fixes. However, this did not address the problems and defects. The Association alleged that it spent a substantial amount of money to identify and correct the damage and that it would incur additional costs for future repairs. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Brian Bassett, Traub Lieberman
Mr. Bassett may be contacted at bbassett@tlsslaw.com

Manhattan Developer Breaks Ground on $520 Million Project

November 18, 2011 — CDJ STAFF

Rebuilding an area of Midtown West that has been condemned for decades, the Gotham Organization has broken ground on a 1,200-unit project that will include housing for a variety of household incomes and a school. One unit of the project will be affordable housing for families of annual incomes up to $40,000. Another will be for middle-income households. Additionally, there will be a 31-story tower with 550 luxury units.

The site CityBiz quotes Mayor Michael Bloomberg, as saying that the project “will grow our economy by creating 2,900 construction-related jobs.” The president of the Gotham Organization, David L. Picket notes that it will “create hundreds of new jobs, generate millions of dollars in revenue for the construction industry, contribute towards the building of a new primary, and provide homes to thousands of New Yorkers.”

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Real Estate & Construction News Roundup (11/8/23) – New Handling of Homelessness, Decline in Investments into ESG Funds, and Shrinking of a Homebuyer’s Dollar

December 11, 2023 — Pillsbury's Construction & Real Estate Law Team - Gravel2Gavel Construction & Real Estate Law Blog
Our latest roundup includes two large flood control projects in New Jersey, how residential REITs could benefit from higher interest rates, how the downfall of WeWork could cause expansive collateral damage, and more!

The Federal Reserve said the possibility of large losses in the $24 trillion U.S. commercial real estate market poses a top risk to financial stability. (Jim Tyson, CFO Dive)
According to proptech firm MRI Software, apartment leasing patterns are “reverting to pre-pandemic patterns and becoming more predictable.” (Leslie Shaver, Multifamily Dive)
Los Angeles has developed a new way to handle homelessness—real estate agents for those without a home. (Jennifer Ludden, NPR)

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Reprinted courtesy of Pillsbury's Construction & Real Estate Law Team

Gilbane Project Exec Completes His Mission Against the Odds

January 19, 2017 — Debra K. Rubin - Engineering News-Record
Afghanistan’s new Ministry of Defense headquarters in Kabul was supposed to symbolize the nation’s future—and U.S. support in that effort—as a self-sustaining, sophisticated structure akin to the Pentagon. But U.S. funding shortfalls stretched an anticipated 18-month project, which began in 2009, into years. While experienced in running projects in an underdeveloped country in which terror attacks and unstable regional politics are routine, Gilbane Building Co. Project Executive Michael P. Sousa wanted no part of this one in 2013, when he first toured it. “The structure was in a severe state of disrepair and riddled with poor construction,” he says, terming it “an embarrassment” to the U.S. government. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Debra K. Rubin, ENR
Ms. Rubin may be contacted at rubind@enr.com

Pensacola Bridge Repair Plan Grows as Inspectors Uncover More Damage

September 28, 2020 — Jim Parsons - Engineering News-Record
With a still-growing list of repairs needed to restore the barge-damaged Pensacola Bay Bridge, the Florida Dept. of Transportation has yet to determine a timeline for completing repairs. But assessments by the agency’s inspectors indicate that impacts from several Skanska-owned construction barges that unmoored during Hurricane Sally not only resulted in five irreparable spans, as previously reported, but at least two more that will require partial replacement. 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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Show Me the Money: The Good Faith Dispute Exception to Prompt Payment Penalties

March 13, 2023 — Garret Murai - California Construction Law Blog
California has a number of prompt payment penalty statutes on the books. Among them is Civil Code section 8800 which requires project owners on private works projects to pay progress payments to direct contractors within 30 days after demand for payment pursuant to contract or be subject to prompt payment penalties of two percent (2%) per month on the amount wrongfully withheld. Like California’s other prompt payment penalty statutes, however, there is an important carve out: If there is a good faith dispute between the project owner and the direct contractor the project owner may withhold up to 150% of the dispute amount and not be subject to prompt payment penalties. And that, my friends, is a higher-tiered party’s “get out of jail free” card. In a case of first impression, the 1st District Court of Appeals, in Vought Construction Inc. v. Stock (2022) 84 Cal.App.5th 622, examined whether a project owner’s claim for liquidated damages constitutes a good faith dispute under Civil Code section 8800. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Garret Murai, Nomos LLP
Mr. Murai may be contacted at gmurai@nomosllp.com

Musings: Moving or Going into a New Service Area, There is More to It Than Just…

July 16, 2023 — Christopher G. Hill - Construction Law Musings
For this week’s Guest Post Friday here at Construction Law Musings, we would like to welcome back (again) Sean Lintow Sr. (@The_HTRC) Sean has over 20 years in the construction and project management fields. As many know he pulled up stakes and moved to the State of Illinois almost a year ago where he still focuses on the “green” / energy efficiency markets by helping builders & trade professionals to improve their methods not only locally but nationally. Currently he is RESNET Rater, AEE CEA (Certified Energy Auditor), ENERGY STAR partner & verifier, EPA Indoor airPLUS verifier, Level 2 Infrared Thermographer, Volunteer Energy Rater for Habitat for Humanity, and Builders Challenge Partner & Verifier. I would like to thank Chris for inviting me back as a guest poster. One item that struck a bell with me lately was his recent post for contractors considering work in another state is to check that states contractor licensing laws. Part of me was just saying – ahh if it were just that simple… With that in mind, here are some additional thoughts of mine along with advice picked up and given to others considering a move to greener pastures in another state, another town or maybe even taking that sweet little project outside of your current area that seems too good to pass up. Licensing: Yep this is a no-brainer – but unfortunately, as I pointed out in a 2012 piece it isn’t always that simple as in some cases the state may not require licensing and instead leave it to the towns which can be real fun to figure out. How long will it take to obtain? Ahh, but what about other licenses that a township may require? Working on a pre-78 house – is the state a self-managed one or is your current EPA certificate and training good enough? (Living in a self-managed state but working on an Indian Reservation? Well you will need to be EPA certified) Does the area require a specialty Storm Water Certificate or??? Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of The Law Office of Christopher G. Hill
Mr. Hill may be contacted at chrisghill@constructionlawva.com

Starting July 1, 2020 General Contractors are “Employers” for All Workers on Their Jobsite

June 08, 2020 — Christopher G. Hill - Construction Law Musings
I have discussed the impactful legislation to the Virginia construction industry in prior posts here at Construction Law Musings. One of those statutes that will take effect on July 1, 2020 will fundamentally change the relationships between general contractors and their subcontractors and suppliers. Senate Bill 838 does the following on construction projects with a value of $500,000 or greater that are not single family residential construction projects:

Makes the general contractor, and all tiers of subcontractors on a particular project contractually liable to pay their subcontractors’ (at any tier) employees wages.
Requires that the payments are equal or exceed those required by other statutes.
Deems contractors to be the employers of their subcontractors’ employees for purposes of Va. Code Section 40.1-29 that imposes criminal and civil penalties for failure to pay wages when due, and
Grants employees a private right of action for any violations, including the right to a class or joint action, award of liquidated damages, reasonable attorney fees and possible treble damages for “knowing” violations by the contractor.

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Reprinted courtesy of The Law Office of Christopher G. Hill
Mr. Hill may be contacted at chrisghill@constructionlawva.com

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