Fairfield Connecticut Building Expert Directory

Contractor May Be Barred Until Construction Lawsuit Settled

November 06, 2013 — CDJ STAFF
In July, Pamar Enterprises was constructing a water main in Bad Axe, Michigan and an error on their part sent water and sewage into homes. This was similar to what happened when they constructed a water main in 2007 in Lyon Township. Now Michigan Representative Terry Brown wants the state to stop awarding contracts to Pamar until the lawsuits are resolved. “I’ve asked [the Michigan Department of Transportation] not to have any more contracts with Pamar,” said Mr. Brown. Mr. Brown is also seeking that the state withholds payments to Pamar. “I was assured that they would not be getting any more payments until the situation was satisfactorily resolved.” In the 2007 case, Pamar won in Oakland County Circuit Court, but the Michigan Court of Appeals, found that Pamar failed in its “duty to exercise reasonable care when it entered onto an altered private property.” Read the court decision
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Insurance Policy to Protect Hawaii's Coral Reefs

December 26, 2022 — Tred R. Eyerly - Insurance Law Hawaii
The New York Times recently reported on an insurance policy issued to the non-profit Nature Conservancy to protect coral reefs in Hawaii. Cihistopher Flavelle, Catrin Einhorn, In a First, Nonprofit Buys Insurance for Hawaii's Threatened Coral Reefs, N.Y. Times, Nov. 21, 2022. If damaged by a storm, coral reefs need immediate attention if they are going to recover. The Nature Conservancy plans a four step process to save damaged reefs:

Purchase a policy for all 400,000 acres of coral reefs surrounding the Hawaii island.
If reefs are sufficiently damaged by a storm the policy will pay out within two weeks.
The Nature Conservancy will ask the State of Hawaii, owner of the reefs, for a permit to repair the storm damage.
Finally, if the state officials issue the permit, the insurance proceeds will pay teams of divers to repair the damage. Crews will have about six weeks before coral begins to die.

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Reprinted courtesy of Tred R. Eyerly, Damon Key Leong Kupchak Hastert
Mr. Eyerly may be contacted at te@hawaiilawyer.com

Insurers Must Defend Allegations of Faulty Workmanship

June 20, 2022 — Tred R. Eyerly - Insurance Law Hawaii
Granting the insured's motion for partial judgment on the pleadings, the court determined the insurers had a duty to defend. Suez Treatment Solutions, Inc. v. Ace Am. Ins. Co. & Liberty Mut. Fire Ins. Co., 2022 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 59044 (S. D. N. Y. March 30, 2022). Suez Treatment Solutions, Inc. held policies from Chubb and Liberty Mutual Fire Insurance Company to cover its operations in connection with the development of a pollution treatment system in North Carolina. When the project ultimately failed, an underlying action sought damages from Suez, alleging breach of contract, negligence, and fraud. Suez filed this case seeking a declaratory judgment that Chubb and Liberty were each obligated to defend and indemnify Suez in the underlying case. The City of High Point hired Suez to upgrade the facilities at its wastewater treatment plant staring in 2021. Because mercury levels were too high in emissions from sewage-sludge incinerators, Suez began working on the installation of a Mercury Removal System. After installation, a leak occurred in a component known as the heat exchanger. The leak caused the system to shut down and weeks-long repairs began. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Tred R. Eyerly, Damon Key Leong Kupchak Hastert
Mr. Eyerly may be contacted at te@hawaiilawyer.com

Texas Court Construes Breach of Contract Exclusion Narrowly in Duty-to-Defend Case

September 10, 2018 — Lorelie S. Masters & Tae Andrews - Hunton Insurance Recovery Blog
In a victory for policyholders, a recent decision from the Western District of Texas narrowly construed a common breach-of-contract exclusion and held that the insurer had a duty to defend its insured against an underlying lawsuit over construction defects. The allegations potentially supported a covered claim, as the conduct of the insured’s subcontractor could have been an independent, “but for” cause of the property damage at issue, thereby triggering the insurer’s duty to defend. In Slay, the insured – a construction company – was hired by a city to design and construct a municipal sports complex, including Little League baseball fields, a softball field, parking lots, and a swimming pool. The construction company hired a subcontractor to perform various services on the project, including paving parking lots and laying the cement for the pool. After completing the project, one of the construction company’s employees noticed cracking in the parking lot and the pool. The construction company notified the city and tried to work out a repair plan, but the city refused and eventually sued, alleging construction defects and asserting claims for breach of contract and negligence. Reprinted courtesy of Lorelie S. Masters, Hunton Andrews Kurth and Tae Andrews, Hunton Andrews Kurth Ms. Masters may be contacted at lmasters@HuntonAK.com Mr. Andrews may be contacted at tandrews@HuntonAK.com Read the court decision
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Lewis Brisbois Moves to Top 15 in Law360 2022 Diversity Snapshot

August 15, 2022 — Rima Badawiya - Lewis Brisbois Newsroom
Los Angeles, Calif. (August 4, 2022) - Lewis Brisbois has ranked 13th in Law360’s 2022 Diversity Snapshot – a measure of the overall presence of individuals from underrepresented backgrounds in law firms of all sizes. Throughout Lewis Brisbois’ history, the firm has been recognized for high achievements in the areas of diversity, equity, and inclusion. Over the past year, its focus on capturing the full picture of its diversity has led to the firm’s rise in several diversity rankings – including the Law360 Diversity Snapshot. As described in the Law360 Pulse article, "Diversity Snapshot: Representation in the Ranks," the Diversity Snapshot serves as a “comprehensive ranking of law firms on their overall representation of minority attorneys,” providing “a picture of where firms are now, and where the future might lead.” Moreover, as explained in the main article of this special publication, "Diversity Snapshot: How Firms Stack Up," Law360 used its own historical surveys as well as data from the American Bar Association to evaluate the diversity in firm headcounts against benchmarks that reflected diversity in the potential marketplace of new hires. Lewis Brisbois’ efforts to capture its diversity numbers has led to a significant increase in the firm’s position from 58th to 13th. This year's Snapshot includes 291 law firms, with 75 in the 600+ attorneys category. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Rima Badawiya, Lewis Brisbois
Ms. Badawiya may be contacted at Rima.Badawiya@lewisbrisbois.com

New York Court Holds Insurer Can Rely on Exclusions After Incorrectly Denying Defense

March 26, 2014 — Tred R. Eyerly – Insurance Law Hawaii
Reversing its prior decision, the New York Court of Appeals held that the insurer could raise policy exclusions regarding its duty to indemnify after it incorrectly denied its duty to defend. K2 Invest. Group, LLC v. Am. Guar. & Liab. Co., 2014 N.Y. LEXIS 201 (N.Y. Ct. App. Feb. 18, 2014). The insured was sued for legal malpractice. His insurer, American Guarantee, refused to defend and a default judgment was entered. The insured assigned his rights against American Guarantee to the plaintiffs. When the underlying plaintiffs sued, American Guarantee said coverage was barred by two exclusions. In a previous decision, K2 Inv. Group, LLC v. Am Guar. & Liab. Ins. Co., 21 NY 3d 284, the court held that American Guarantee's breach of its duty to defend prevented it from relying on policy exclusions. This, however, contradicted another case issued by the court, Servidone Const. Corp. v. Security Ins. Co. of Hartford, 64 N.Y 2d 419 (1985). Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Tred R. Eyerly, Insurance Law Hawaii
Mr. Eyerly may be contacted at te@hawaiilawyer.com

Patti Santelle Honored by Rutgers School of Law with Arthur E. Armitage Sr. Distinguished Alumni Award

March 01, 2021 — Patricia Santelle - White and Williams
White and Williams is proud to announce that Patti Santelle, Chair Emeritus, will be honored by the Rutgers School of Law-Camden Alumni Association with the 2020 Arthur E. Armitage Sr. Distinguished Alumni Award. The Armitage Award was established in 1983 in memory of Armitage, who, with a group of interested citizens, founded both the South Jersey Law School in 1926 and its companion College of South Jersey in 1927. Past recipients include governors, member of Congress, state and federal judges, and industry leaders. Patti, a 1985 graduate, is a Co-Chair of the Executive Committee of the newly established Rutgers Law Alumnae Network and a Past Chancellor and long-time member of the Board of the Rutgers-Camden Law Alumni Association. While in law school, she was President of the Student Bar Association, winner of the Hunter Advanced Moot Court Competition and a member of the National Moot Court Team. In 2010, Patti received the Scarlet Oak Meritorious Service Award from Rutgers University for her contributions as an alumni leader and student mentor at the law school. For the past seven years, she served as the Managing Partner and Chair of the Executive Committee at White and Williams, the first woman in the firm’s history and in the City of Philadelphia to serve in that role in a major law firm. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Patricia Santelle, White and Williams
Ms. Santelle may be contacted at santellep@whiteandwilliams.com

Nevada Senate Bill 435 is Now in Effect

February 24, 2020 — Bremer Whyte Brown & O'Meara LLP
ATTENTION: Nevada liability departments and auto insurance carriers! Nevada Senate Bill No. 435 was recently signed into law and there are two key points to be aware of: Disclosure of Policy Limits Demand and Voiding Releases. These both deal with pre-litigation situations. 1) Nevada law now requires a motor vehicle insurer to disclose the limits of the policy if the claimant provides a HIPAA authorization which allows the carrier to “receive all medical reports, records and bills related to the claim from the providers of health care.” This is a change from the previous Nevada statute which required the disclosure of policy limits only after litigation was commenced. However, it appears from the language of the statute that there are limits to this new mandate. Section 4 of the new law is written in such a way to allow the argument that the new law applies only to accidents that occurred after 10/1/19, and that the insurance company has to request the HIPAA waiver from the claimant in order for the disclosure requirement to apply. The plaintiff’s bar is already attempting to address this language in the legislature. As written, subsection (4) is governed by subsection (1) which states that the insurance company “may require the claimant … to provide … a written authorization.” The following subparts all appear to be triggered only by the act of the insurance company requesting a HIPAA waiver. The plaintiff’s bar is pushing for clarifying language that would make it clear that once the claimant sent a HIPAA waiver, irrespective of whether the document was requested by the insurance company or not, the insurance company is required to disclose policy limits. This is not how the law reads on its face, and the change would make a significant difference from a practical perspective. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Bremer Whyte Brown & O'Meara LLP

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