Fairfield Connecticut Building Expert Directory

West Coast Casualty Construction Defect Seminar Announced for 2014

October 30, 2013 — CDJ STAFF
Organizers describe the even as “America’s largest, America’s favorite, America’s best construction defect seminar.” And in 2014, they will hold the twenty-first of these annual construction defect seminars. As for size, last year’s event comprised 1,614 attendees, travelling not only from across the county, but from outside the United States as well. West Coast Casualty is beginning to line up its speakers for next May’s seminar. The organizers are asking speakers to submit proposed topics by November 25 and the list will be finalized on December 15. The theme for the event will be “Back to Business … Working Smarter … Not Harder.” While West Coast Casualty is looking for topics that focus on the central theme, they are also interested in presentations on emerging trends in construction defect litigation. In addition to seminars, there will be booths for many of the companies in the construction defect resolution industry, demonstrating products and services of use to professionals in the field. This gives attendees a chance for less-structured interaction than is possible within a seminar. Continuing education credits were granted for the 2013 seminar by a lengthy list of organizations, which included the Bar Associations of 22 states and the Departments of Insurance of 35. The 2014 West Coast Casualty Construction Defect Seminar will be held May 15 and 16 at the Disneyland Hotel and Resort. During the seminar comes the awarding of the prestigious Jerrold S. Oliver Award of Excellence, named in honor of the late Judge Jerrold S. Oliver, who was known for his skills as a mediator. In 2013, the “Ollie” was awarded to Margie Luper in acknowledgement of her contributions to the betterment of the construction defect resolution field. The recipients of the Jerrold S. Oliver Award of Excellence are selected by the votes of about 6,000 industry professionals. Read the court decision
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Insurance Policies and Indemnity Provisions Are Not the Same

October 19, 2020 — Garret Murai - California Construction Law Blog
Just because you own a pair of Air Jordans doesn’t make you Michael Jordan. In the next case, Carter v. Pulte Home Corporation, Case No. A154757 (July 23, 2020), the 1st District Court of Appeal denied an insurance carrier’s equitable subrogation claim explaining that an insurer’s obligations under its insurance policy are not the same as an idemnitee’s obligations under an indemnity provision. Or, as aptly put by the Court of Appeal, while a “subrogated insurer is said to ‘stand in the shoes’ of its insured, because it has no greater rights than the insured. Here . . . [the insurer] is seeking to stand in a different, more advantageous set of shoes.” Carter v. Pulte Home Corporation Pulte Home Corporation was sued for construction defects by 38 homeowners in two housing developments. Various subcontractors had worked on the projects, but under their subcontracts, each subcontractor agreed to indemnify Pulte from and against “all liability, claims, judgments, suits, or demands for damages to persons or property arising out of, resulting from, or relating to Contractor’s performance of work under the Agreement (‘Claims’) unless such Claims have been specifically determined by the trier of fact to be the sole negligence of Pulte . . . ” Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Garret Murai, Nomos LLP
Mr. Murai may be contacted at gmurai@nomosllp.com

Under the Hood of U.S. Construction Spending Is Revised Data

January 06, 2016 — Vince Golle – Bloomberg
Here’s one key takeaway from the Commerce Department’s report Monday on U.S. construction spending. The 0.4 percent decrease in November, which itself was weaker than the most pessimistic Bloomberg survey forecast, was accompanied by downward revisions to prior months. The combination suggests some economists may revise down their fourth-quarter GDP tracking forecasts. * October construction spending rose 0.3 percent, compared with a prior estimate of 1 percent, while September outlays advanced 0.2 percent versus a previous estimate of a 0.6 percent gain Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Vince Golle, Bloomberg

Utah Supreme Court Allows Citizens to Block Real Estate Development Project by Voter Referendum

June 10, 2019 — Sean M. Mosman & Mark O. Morris - Snell & Wilmer Under Construction
The Utah Supreme Court recently decided Baker v. Carlson, 2018 UT 59, which considered a developer’s ongoing effort to build a mixed-use, part-residential and part-commercial development on the site of the long-defunct Cottonwood Mall located in Holladay, Utah. On November 28, 2018, the Supreme Court affirmed the Third District Court’s ruling that a voter referendum to block the development was valid. This ruling calls into question the certainty of investment-backed real estate decisions in Utah and thus could carry negative implications for the Utah construction and real estate development communities. The Cottonwood Mall opened in the early 1960s, and for several decades was a popular regional shopping destination. But the mall fell on financial hard times in the mid-1990s, and since 2007 the 57-acre lot has sat vacant. Around that time, the owner of the lot made plans to redevelop it, and asked Holladay City to rezone the site to permit mixed uses. In response, the City rezoned the lot as Regional/Mixed-Use (R/M-U). The City also created a process to control the development of an R/M-U zone, requiring prospective builders to first submit a site development master plan—which sets forth guidelines for the overall development and design of the site—to the City for approval. After the City approves a master plan, the developer must enter into a development agreement with the City, giving the developer certain rights and addressing other development-related issues. Reprinted courtesy of Sean M. Mosman, Snell & Wilmer and Mark O. Morris, Snell & Wilmer Mr. Mosman may be contacted at smosman@swlaw.com Mr. Morris may be contacted at mmorris@swlaw.com Read the court decision
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As Florence Eyes East Coast, Are You Looking At Your Insurance?

October 02, 2018 — Michael S. Levine & Andrea DeField - Hunton Insurance Recovery Blog
Hurricane Florence will affect the U.S. east coast later this week with significant damage to property and resulting business disruption. Businesses far-removed from the impact zone also will be affected as manufacturing, retail, travel and supply chains, among other industries, are disrupted by the physical damage. For those in the impact zone, knowing the fundamentals about your property insurance is critical. For those in remote locations, now is a good time to refresh yourself as well, since post-storm disruptions and losses require prompt notice to insurers and fast action to help mitigate any resulting loss. A failure on either front could jeopardize coverage. Reprinted courtesy of Michael S. Levine, Hunton Andrews Kurth and Andrea DeField, Hunton Andrews Kurth Mr. Levine may be contacted at mlevine@HuntonAK.com Ms. DeField may be contacted at adefield@HuntonAK.com Read the court decision
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Pennsylvania Mechanics’ Lien “Waivers” and “Releases”: What’s the Difference?

March 19, 2015 — Thomas C. Rogers – White and Williams LLP
In the world of Pennsylvania mechanics’ liens there is much confusion about the interchangeable use of the words mechanics lien “waiver” and mechanics’ lien “release.” Many who work in the world of real estate in Pennsylvania, be they contractors, subcontractors, developers, lenders, or attorneys, use these terms interchangeably without understanding that there is a meaningful difference. Failure to understand the difference creates confusion when discussing issues and drafting documents regarding mechanics’ liens. In Pennsylvania a mechanics’ lien “waiver” is the pre-construction waiver of liens that was historically executed by a general contractor and an owner and filed with the Prothonotary in the county in which construction is located. These pre-construction lien “waivers,” assuming they were properly prepared, signed by the contractor and owner and filed in accordance with applicable law, negated the ability of that contractor and its subcontractors to file a mechanics’ lien on the subject property. These pre-construction lien “waivers” were part of every construction loan closing up through the amendments to the Pennsylvania Mechanics’ Lien Act that went into effect in 2007. Since 2007, the Mechanics’ Lien Act has been amended twice to further address those circumstances in which pre-construction lien waivers still have vitality. Except with respect to those narrow situations specifically provided for in the statute, pre-construction lien “waivers” are against public policy in Pennsylvania. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Thomas C. Rogers, White and Williams LLP
Mr. Rogers may be contacted at rogerst@whiteandwilliams.com

Real Estate & Construction News Roundup (8/6/24) – Construction Tech Deals Surge, Senators Reintroduce Housing Bill, and Nonresidential Spending Drops

September 16, 2024 — Pillsbury's Construction & Real Estate Law Team - Gravel2Gavel Construction & Real Estate Law Blog
In our latest roundup, cybersecurity attacks target contractors, U.S. banks report weaker profits, additional commercial real estate is distressed, and more!

Spending dropped in almost half of nonresidential subcategories in June, with the decrease stemming from higher interest rates, tighter credit conditions and a softening economy. (Sebastian Obando, Construction Dive)
Despite the decline in investment dollars for construction technology, the number of deals surged by 18% year-over-year, indicating sustained interest and activity in the sector. (Sebastian Obando, Construction Dive)
As cybersecurity attacks on U.S.-based businesses ramp up, general contractors are not immune. (Jen A. Miller, Construction Dive)

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

US Moves to Come Clean on PFAS in Drinking Water

September 18, 2023 — Pam McFarland, Debra K. Rubin & Mary B. Powers - Engineering News-Record
Congress has allocated billions of dollars to address contamination caused by the ubiquitous class of “forever” chemicals known as PFAS—with billions more also earmarked in recent legal settlements with manufacturers—but drinking water managers, construction sector experts and other stakeholders say the true cost of cleanup could be much higher. Reprinted courtesy of Pam McFarland, Engineering News-Record, Debra K. Rubin, Engineering News-Record and Mary B. Powers, Engineering News-Record Ms. McFarland may be contacted at mcfarlandp@enr.com Ms. Rubin may be contacted at rubind@enr.com Read the court decision
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FAIRFIELD CONNECTICUT BUILDING EXPERT DIRECTORY AND CAPABILITIES