Seattle Washington Building Expert Directory

Neighbors Fight to Halt Construction after Asbestos found on Property

October 15, 2014 — Beverley BevenFlorez-CDJ STAFF
SI Live reported that residents spoke out at the Staten Island, New York community board meeting to try to halt “construction taking place at former Mount Manresa Jesuit Retreat House property in Fort Wadsworth.” Barbara Sanchez, secretary of the Committee to Save Mount Manresa, stated that halting the construction is urgent now that asbestos has been discovered on the property. "We want a full stop-work order ... Everything being done around those buildings is being blown into our homes,” Sanchez said in the meeting, according to SI Live. “So I want testing for ... everything touched by the asbestos -- and our homes, before the work continues at Mount Manresa!" Jeanna Massimi, a resident of Fort Wadsworth, stated that people in the community are already dealing with health problems due to the construction work: “A lot of people where I live [are having] X-rays and are being tested for asbestos exposure. They can't have their bedroom windows open anymore. The dust is like soot -- it's thick. It's everywhere in the home. People are coughing, wheezing and hoarse. You end up feeling lethargic.” Mike Gilsenan, assistant deputy commissioner at the Department of Environmental Protection, said it was “highly unlikely any dust or fibers migrated off that site. That is the best I can tell you.” But SI Live reported that he added “that the process is ‘not foolproof.’” Read the court decision
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First Look at Long List of AEC Firms Receiving PPP Loans

July 20, 2020 — Tom Ichniowski & Scott Blair - Engineering News-Record
Thousands of construction and design firm from all parts of the U.S. appear on lists of companies that have received federal Paycheck Protection Program forgivable loans, according to federal documents just made public. Reprinted courtesy of Tom Ichniowski, Engineering News-Record and Scott Blair, Engineering News-Record Mr. Ichniowski may be contacted at ichniowskit@enr.com Mr. Blair may be contacted at blairs@enr.com Read the full story... Read the court decision
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McGraw Hill to Sell off Construction-Data Unit

March 19, 2014 — Beverley BevenFlorez-CDJ STAFF
McGraw Hill Financial announced “plans to sell a construction-data unit concentrated on the U.S. market” according to The Wall Street Journal. This follows McGraw Hill’s determination to “focus on global operations and cutting costs.” “The construction division ‘is not a business linked to the global markets,’” Douglas L. Peterson, McGraw Hill’s Chief Executive said to The Wall Street Journal. “’It's very different’ than its other units, such as Standard & Poor's Ratings Services, J.D. Power or S&P Capital IQ, with the potential for larger international footprints.” McGraw Hill’s construction division “sells commercial-real-estate information to developers and manufacturers” and “generates about $170 million in annual revenue.” The division “employs about 650 people.” Read the court decision
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Construction Litigation Roundup: “A Close Call?”

August 05, 2024 — Daniel Lund III - Lexology
Not really, said a Florida state appellate court when a public construction project owner sued a defaulted general contractor after recovering from the general contractor’s surety. The general contractor, Close Construction, entered into a contract for a lift station rehabilitation construction project with the City of Riviera Beach in Florida. During the course of the work the public owner terminated the contract, whereupon the GC and the owner brought claims against each other in court. A jury ultimately held against the general contractor and in favor of the public owner in the amount of approximately $1.9 million. The general contractor appealed. On appeal, the general contractor noted that the public works surety which it was required by the contract to obtain for the project had hired another company to complete the work when the general contractor was terminated and had otherwise “settled with the District under its bond for $1,000,000.” Based on that settlement, the general contractor had moved, unsuccessfully, in the trial court for a post-trial setoff because the “settlement covered the same damages that the jury assessed” against the GC, and because the surety was “jointly and severally liable” with the GC – pursuant to the terms of the bond – for those damages. In essence, the general contractor sought to avoid having the public owner “obtain a double recovery.” Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Daniel Lund III, Phelps
Mr. Lund may be contacted at daniel.lund@phelps.com

Suing A Payment Bond Surety in Different Venue Than Set Forth in The Subcontract

August 10, 2021 — David Adelstein - Florida Construction Legal Updates
The venue to file a lawsuit can be an important issue for a variety of reasons, whether for convenience or the prospect of a more favorable outcome. Oftentimes, there is a venue provision in a contract that provides where the exclusive venue for any dispute arising out of the contract must be brought. In a recent case, Southeastern Concrete Constructors, LLC v. Western Surety Company, 2021 WL 2557297 (Fla. 2d DCA 2021), dealing with a Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) project, a subcontractor filed suit against the general contractor’s FDOT payment bond issued under Florida Statute s. 337.18. The subcontractor did not file suit against the general contractor. The subcontractor filed suit in Hillsborough County, Florida. However, the subcontract contained a venue provision requiring disputes under the subcontract to be brought in Levy County, Florida. Based on this venue provision in the subcontract, the trial court granted a motion to transfer the venue of the dispute to Levy County. This, however, was reversed on appeal. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of David Adelstein, Kirwin Norris, P.A.
Mr. Adelstein may be contacted at dma@kirwinnorris.com

Arbitration is Waivable (Even If You Don’t Mean To)

February 16, 2016 — Christopher G. Hill – Construction Law Musings
Be careful with how you act with arbitration clauses in your contracts. If you are not careful in how you act to enforce these clauses, you could find yourself stuck in court whether you like it or not. As I stated in a recent update to a post last month, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals recently weighed in on the issue of a contractor’s waiver of its rights to arbitration under a contract. Briefly, the facts of Forrester v. Penn Lyon Homes, et. al., No. 07-2171 are as follows. The Forrester’s sued Penn Lyon and its warranty company alleging among other things a breach of express warranty based upon a warranty contract containing a mandatory arbitration clause. Instead of immediately alleging an affirmative defense based upon the arbitration clause, the defendants removed the case to federal court and litigated for 18 months before raising the arbitration defense for the first time. The 4th Circuit (correctly in my opinion) affirmed the lower court and held that the defendants defaulted their right to arbitration because of their actions in defense of the court action and the prejudice to the plaintiffs caused by those actions. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Christopher G. Hill, Law Office of Christopher G. Hill, PC
Mr. Hill may be contacted at chrisghill@constructionlawva.com

Trial Victory in San Mateo County!

February 24, 2020 — Wilke Fleury
Wilke Fleury attorneys Adriana Cervantes and Matt Powell recently prevailed at trial in a case involving a real property dispute in San Mateo County. Wilke Fleury represented the owner of an apartment building in an action against an individual who recently acquired the duplex on the adjoining property. As set forth in the pleadings, the Apartment’s owner, tenants, and invitees, used the property in many ways including access, parking, and recreational purposes for over five years, and the new owner had actual notice of that use before the purchase. Nonetheless, the new owner insisted the Apartment had no right to use the property, and filed an action to quiet title. Wilke Fleury filed a cross-complaint on behalf of the Apartment alleging that it had a prescriptive easement over the property. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Wilke Fleury

Congratulations to Partners Nicole Whyte, Keith Bremer, Vik Nagpal, and Devin Gifford, and Associates Shelly Mosallaei and Melissa Youngpeter on Their Inclusion in 2024 Best Lawyers in America!

October 24, 2023 — Bremer Whyte Brown & O’Meara, LLP
Bremer Whyte Brown & O’Meara, LLP is proud to announce Partners Nicole Whyte, Keith Bremer, and Vik Nagpal have been selected by their peers for inclusion in the 2024 Edition of The Best Lawyers in America, and Partner Devin Gifford, and Associates Shelly Mosallaei and Melissa Youngpeter, are included in the Fourth Edition of Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch. Each person is being recognized for their diligent work in the areas of Family Law, Construction, and Real Estate Litigation. Best Lawyers is 100% based on peer evaluations and is the most respected peer-review publication in the history of the legal profession. Acknowledgment in both The Best Lawyers in America and Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch edition is widely regarded by both clients and legal professionals as a significant honor, bestowed on a lawyer by his or her peers. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Bremer Whyte Brown & O’Meara, LLP

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