FAIRFIELD CONNECTICUT BUILDING EXPERT
DIRECTORY AND CAPABILITIES

Time is Money. Unless You’re an Insurance Company

December 02, 2015 — Garret Murai – California Construction Law Blog
Benjamin Franklin may never have been President but he’s better known than most of them. Not least of all for his pithy quotes on a wide range of subjects:

On personal finance – “A penny saved is a penny earned.”

On education – “Tell me and I forget, teach me and I remember, involve me and I learn.”

On getting real – “In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.”

On guests – “Guests, like fish, begin to smell after three days.”

On lawyers – “A countryman between two lawyers is like a fish between two cats.”

On beer – “In wine there is wisdom, in beer there is freedom, in water there is bacteria.”

But if you were to pick one theme that seems to recur the most in Franklin’s quotes, it would be productivity:

“Time is money.”

“By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.”

“Never leave that till tomorrow which you can do today.”

“Early to bed and early to rise, makes a man happy, wealthy and wise.”

But, as the next case, Grebow v. Mercury Insurance Company, Case No. B261172, California Court of Appeals for the Second District (October 21, 2015), illustrates, sometimes the most efficient way of doing things may not necessarily be the most financially prudent way of doing things. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Garret Murai, Wendel Rosen Black & Dean LLP
Mr. Murai may be contacted at gmurai@wendel.com

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U.S. Construction Value Flat at End of Summer

December 04, 2013 — CDJ STAFF
The Census Bureau has released it numbers for the value of construction put in place for September and October, and while further numbers are forthcoming, this current report shows little change. The value of construction dropped a miniscule 0.3% in September, however, residential construction actually showed a slight increase. October then showed a 0.8% increase, but then private residential construction dropped by 0.5%. In all, however, by the end of October, private residential spending was up 17.8% over the prior year. As with other sectors of public spending, public residential spending dropped 3.4% from the prior year. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of

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OSHA Launches Program to Combat Trenching Accidents

October 16, 2018 — Tom Ichniowski – Engineering News-Record
In the wake of a recent rise in fatal trenching cave-ins, the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration has begun a targeted education and enforcement program to try to reverse the trend. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Tom Ichniowski, ENR
Mr. Ichniowski may be contacted at ichniowskit@enr.com

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Look Up And Look Out: Increased Antitrust Enforcement Of Horizontal No-Poach Agreements Signals Heightened Scrutiny Of Vertical Agreements May Be Next

November 28, 2022 — John F. Finnegan, III & Dominick Weinkam - ConsensusDocs
In the current regulatory environment, it is important for contractors to remain vigilant of heightened anti-competitive enforcement in the construction and procurement spheres by the United States Department of Justice (DOJ). Such vigilance should include, among other things, regular review of applicable laws and implementation of related updates to compliance policies, as well as careful evaluation of joint venture (JV), subcontractor, and teaming agreements.  Recent DOJ Activity Opens The Door To Broader Antitrust Exposure For Contractors Many contractors include exclusivity and non-compete clauses in their vertical agreements, including subcontractor agreements and certain types of JV and teaming agreements. In fact, many widely available “checklists” for drafting these agreements recommend including such provisions; however, under U.S. antitrust law, particularly as enforced by the DOJ in the last 1-2 years, exclusivity and non-compete clauses may be construed as unduly competition-restricting. Although no court has yet held that exclusivity and non-compete clauses in vertical agreements violate antitrust laws, recent aggressive enforcement activity by the DOJ with regard to horizontal no-poach agreements suggests that the investigatory headwinds may be blowing in that direction. Reprinted courtesy of John F. Finnegan, III, Watt, Tieder, Hoffar, & Fitzgerald, LLP (ConsensusDocs) and Dominick Weinkam, Watt, Tieder, Hoffar, & Fitzgerald, LLP (ConsensusDocs) Mr. Finnegan may be contacted at jfinnegan@watttieder.com Mr. Weinkam may be contacted at dweinkam@watttieder.com Read the court decision
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Construction Law Job Opps and How to Create Them

October 24, 2021 — Christopher G. Hill - Construction Law Musings
For this weeks Guest Post Friday, Kirsten Grant (@kgrantcareers on Twitter) has graced us with her thoughts on a very timely topic: How to get a job as a construction attorney. Before becoming a career specialist at Kaplan University, one of the largest online universities in the nation, Kirsten Grant had faxed almost 1000 resumes, e-mailed close to 300 resumes, personally mailed 20 resumes with each one featuring “special inserts” to encourage hiring managers to read her resume (50% of those resumes received calls for an interview) and interviewed with 50 companies over the course of 5 months. Based on the feedback hiring managers provided, in addition to 10 years experience in human resources, training, recruiting and staffing she REALLY learned what hiring managers look for in a candidate and today helps over 40,000 adult learners understand how to conduct successful job searches and earn a promotions. As the real estate industry makes torrid adjustments to right itself due to foreclosures, short sales, and falling house prices, court rooms are seeing more construction law cases. As houses and properties fall into states of disrepair and as efforts are taken to repair them a chain of events take place:

1. Property is purchased
2. Contractors are hired to make repairs to a property
3. The selected contractor files permits for the type of work performed
4. After work has been performed, contactor receives compensation

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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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Hotel Owner Makes Construction Defect Claim

January 28, 2013 — CDJ STAFF
A lawsuit has been filed over the construction of the GrandStay Hotel & Conference Center in Apple Valley Minnesota. Apple Valley GSRS, LLC, who invested in the hotel, has sued Cole Group Architects and Cornerstone Construction, alleging that the architects design was not to industry standards and that the builder used inferior materials and techniques. The lawsuit makes claim of "significant damage." The hotel hired an engineer who subsequently recommended that all the stucco and the roof should be be replaced. The stucco has shown signs of cracking and crumbling. The hotel states that the roof has problems with leaking. Cornerstone has denied the hotel's claims. They have also counter-sued their subcontractors. Read the court decision
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Celebrating Dave McLain’s Recognition in the Best Lawyers in America® 2025

September 16, 2024 — Higgins, Hopkins, McLain & Roswell, LLC
We are thrilled to announce that David M. McLain, a founding partner of Higgins, Hopkins, McLain & Roswell, LLC, has been recognized in the prestigious publication, The Best Lawyers in America® 2025. David has earned this honor for his outstanding work in Construction Law and Litigation – Construction. For over two decades, David has been a leading figure in the field of construction law. His dedication to providing exceptional legal services to developers, general contractors, and other construction professionals has set him apart as a trusted advisor and advocate in the Colorado construction industry. His inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America® 2025 is a testament to his hard work, legal acumen, and the respect he has garnered from his peers. About The Best Lawyers in America® The Best Lawyers in America® is one of the oldest and most esteemed peer-review publications in the legal profession. Each year, lawyers are nominated and evaluated by their peers based on their professional expertise and achievements. Only a select few receive this honor, making it a significant recognition of excellence in the legal field. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Higgins, Hopkins, McLain & Roswell, LLC

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Traub Lieberman Attorneys Recognized as 2024 “Top Lawyers” in New York by Hudson Valley Magazine

July 15, 2024 — Traub Lieberman
Traub Lieberman is pleased to announce four New York partners have been included in the 2024 edition of the Hudson Valley Magazine "Top Lawyers in the Hudson Valley in 2024.” This annual guide recognizes over 260 of the region's leading attorneys. Lisa Shrewsberry, Hillary Raimondi and Jonathan Harwood are noted for their professional skills in the category of Professional Malpractice Non-Medical Defense and Copernicus “Cope” Gaza in the Insurance category. Insurance:

• Copernicus T. Gaza

Professional Malpractice Non Medical Defense:

• Jonathan R. Harwood
• Hillary J. Raimondi
• Lisa L. Shrewsberry

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Reprinted courtesy of Traub Lieberman

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