Hydrogen—A Key Element in the EU’s Green Planning
December 07, 2020 —
Matthew Oresman & Henrietta Worthington - Gravel2Gavel Construction & Real Estate Law BlogGettyImages-1150744671-300x225Hydrogen is gaining global recognition for its potential as a key player in the energy transition. Investors and businesses are exploring opportunities across multiple sectors, including energy, manufacturing, transport and finance. According to a report by Bloomberg, the current pipeline for global hydrogen projects is worth an estimated $90 billion. The EU is not going to be left behind, with a focal point of its Green Deal being on hydrogen.
The EU’s executive branch (the European Commission or EC) has confirmed its commitment to increasing hydrogen projects across the bloc, with a priority on green hydrogen. Its Hydrogen Strategy, released in March, states that hydrogen is “essential to support the EU’s commitment to reach carbon neutrality by 2050 and for the global effort to implement the Paris Agreement while working towards zero pollution.”
The EU’s executive branch (the European Commission or EC) has confirmed its commitment to increasing hydrogen projects across the bloc, with a priority on green hydrogen. Its Hydrogen Strategy, released in March, states that hydrogen is “essential to support the EU’s commitment to reach carbon neutrality by 2050 and for the global effort to implement the Paris Agreement while working towards zero pollution.”
Reprinted courtesy of
Matthew Oresman, Pillsbury and
Henrietta Worthington, Pillsbury
Mr. Oresman may be contacted at matthew.oresman@pillsburylaw.com
Ms. Worthington may be contacted at henrietta.worthington@pillsburylaw.com
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Miorelli Doctrine’s Sovereign Immunity in Public Construction Contracts — Not the Be-All and End-All
March 21, 2022 —
David Adelstein - Florida Construction Legal UpdatesIn the Florida commercial contract public arena, there is a sovereign immunity doctrine known as the Miorelli doctrine after 1997 Florida Supreme Court decision, County of Brevard v. Miorelli Eng’g, Inc., 703 So.2d 1049 (Fla. 1997). This doctrine would apply to construction contracts between a contractor and a public body.
Through the years, the Miorelli doctrine stands for the proposition in commercial transactions with a Florida public body “that the doctrine of sovereign immunity precludes recovery of the cost of extra work where claims for that extra work are ‘totally outside’ the terms of the contract.” Monroe County v. Ashbritt, Inc., 47 Fla.L.Weekly D594a (Fla. 3d DCA 2022). See also Asbritt, n.2 quoting Posen Construction v. Lee County, 921 F.Supp.2d 1350, 1356 (M.D.Fla. 2013) (“A claim for damages predicated on work ‘totally outside the terms of the contract‘ is barred by the doctrine of sovereign immunity, whereas damages caused by extra work done at the state’s behest and in furtherance of the contractual covenants (express or implied) are potentially recoverable.”)
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David Adelstein, Kirwin Norris, P.A.Mr. Adelstein may be contacted at
dma@kirwinnorris.com
Claim Against Broker Survives Motion to Dismiss
January 25, 2021 —
Tred R. Eyerly - Insurance Law HawaiiThe insured's complaint against its broker for failure to secure adequate coverage survived a motion to dismiss. Broecker v. Conklin Prop., LLC, 2020 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 7399 (Dec. 2, 2020).
Conklin Property, LLC purchased real property and entered into a contract with JJC Contracting, Inc. for construction and renovation of the property. The broker, Total Management Corp. (TMC) was retained by Conklin to secure insurance for the construction phase of the renovation project. During the renovation, an employee of JJC was injured at the property and died. The employee's estate then sued Conklin. US Underwriters, the insurer, disclaimed coverage pursuant to an exclusion for bodily injury to contractors and subcontractors and their workers.
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Tred R. Eyerly, Damon Key Leong Kupchak HastertMr. Eyerly may be contacted at
te@hawaiilawyer.com
Norristown, PA to Stop Paying Repair Costs for Defect-Ridden Condo
February 10, 2014 —
Beverley BevenFlorez-CDJ STAFFThe city of Norristown, Pennsylvania has already paid “$3.4 million for construction repairs and legal expenses” for the 26-unit condominium on 770 Sandy Street, according to The Times Herald. Therefore city officials recently declared that “they will no longer pay the $40,000 annual cost for maintenance, electricity and repairs” for the building.
“At some point, the folks that own it have to step up and take responsibility for it,” Norristown Council President William Caldwell told The Times Herald. “No later than February 28, the municipality will cease to provide or pay for maintenance of 770 Sandy Street.”
Previously, Norristown had received court orders to repair the building, after numerous construction defects turned up including “missing firestops in numerous walls, missing grout and steel rebar in block-wall, emergency stair towers, faulty electrical wiring and no provision for firestopping in the first-floor garage ceiling.” City officials “were faulted by Montgomery County Common Pleas Court judges for not properly inspecting the construction.”
Charles Madracchia, past Customers Bank attorney and current Homeowner attorney, is “continuing active litigation in both federal and state court.”
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Newmeyer & Dillion Selected to 2017 OCBJ’s Best Places to Work List
July 26, 2017 —
Newmeyer & Dillion LLPProminent business and real estate law firm Newmeyer & Dillion LLP is proud to be one of the selected companies in the
Best Places to Work in Orange County – 2017 Survey in the category of medium sized companies. This marks the sixth consecutive year Newmeyer & Dillion LLP has made the list, affirming that its profound commitment to professionalism and client service is shared among its workforce. The firm was honored in the July 24 issue of the Orange County Business Journal.
Jeff Dennis, Newmeyer & Dillion's Managing Partner, commends the effort and commitment of each employee in achieving this result. "We strive to make Newmeyer & Dillion a great place to be, but we only set the goal. It is our employees and their ongoing loyalty and commitment to our mission that makes it happen. Together, we create a culture here that cannot be matched anywhere else."
Created in 2009, the awards program evaluates entries based on workplace policies, practices, demographics, and also collects employee surveys to measure overall satisfaction and experience. The Best Companies Group worked alongside the Orange County Business Journal in collecting and analyzing the data and is a partner in the project.
About Newmeyer & Dillion
For more than 30 years, Newmeyer & Dillion has delivered creative and outstanding legal solutions and trial results for a wide array of clients. With over 70 attorneys practicing in all aspects of business, employment, real estate, construction and insurance law, Newmeyer & Dillion delivers legal services tailored to meet each client’s needs. Headquartered in Newport Beach, California, with offices in Walnut Creek, California and Las Vegas, Nevada, Newmeyer & Dillion attorneys are recognized by The Best Lawyers in America©, and Super Lawyers as top tier and some of the best lawyers in California, and have been given Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review's AV Preeminent® highest rating. For additional information, call 949-854-7000 or visit www.ndlf.com.
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When Employer’s Liability Coverage May Be Limited in New York
June 28, 2021 —
Robert S. Nobel & Craig Rokuson - Traub LiebermanNew York recognizes that coverage under Workers’ Compensation (“WC”) and Employer’s Liability (“EL”) policies is generally unlimited. See Tully Const. Co. v. Illinois Nat. Ins. Co., 131 A.D.3d 598 (2d Dept. 2015); Oneida Ltd. v. Utica Mut. Ins. Co., 263 A.D.2d 825, 694 N.Y.S.2d 221 (3d Dept. 1999). However, there is case holding that EL coverage may be limited in certain instances, such as when the primary EL carrier is listed as scheduled underlying insurance on an excess policy.
In Liberty Mut. Ins. Co. v. Ins. Co. of State of Pennsylvania, 43 A.D.3d 666, 841 N.Y.S.2d 288 (1st Dept. 2007), an employee of General Industrial Service Corporation (“General”), a subcontractor on a construction project, sought to recover under New York’s Labor Law against the project’s owner and construction manager. Those defendants, in turn, brought a third-party action for indemnification against General. The employee’s personal injury claim was ultimately settled for $2.5 million. After the settlement, the excess insurer, Liberty, filed suit against the primary employer’s liability insurers, The Insurance Company of the State of Pennsylvania and American International Group of Companies (collectively, “AIG”), which had refused to participate in the defense or settlement of the underlying personal injury litigation. Although the issue of whether the plaintiff in the underling action had sustained a “grave injury” (necessary to support the common law indemnity claim against General and trigger coverage under the Employer’s Lability policy) had not yet been determined, the court held that “[i]n the event the existence of a grave injury is proven, AIG’s liability will be limited to $1 million.”
Reprinted courtesy of
Robert S. Nobel, Traub Lieberman and
Craig Rokuson, Traub Lieberman
Mr. Nobel may be contacted at rnobel@tlsslaw.com
Mr. Rokuson may be contacted at crokuson@tlsslaw.com
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Policy Renewals: Has Your Insurer Been Naughty or Nice?
December 26, 2022 —
Latosha M. Ellis & Jae Lynn Huckaba - Hunton insurance Recovery BlogA review of insurance policies at renewal should be on every business’s annual task list—and it should be checked twice! Just as your business grows and evolves every year, so should your insurance program. Together with staying proactive and preparing for renewal months before the policy expiration, there are a number of best practices to put your business in the best position to maximize insurance recovery, including shopping around, evaluating changes to your business, engaging the appropriate stakeholders, and performing a policy audit with a coverage attorney.
Shop Around
An early start to the renewal process allows for thorough decision-making and more time to engage in negotiations with the insurer. Even if the preference is to stay with the existing insurer, shopping around creates some buying power within the negotiation process.
Evaluate Operational or Business Practice Changes
Risk control and mitigation have a direct impact on your premiums and availability of coverage. Assess any changes in the business’s exposure to risk and make any necessary insurance coverage adjustments.
Reprinted courtesy of
Latosha M. Ellis, Hunton Andrews Kurth and
Jae Lynn Huckaba, Hunton Andrews Kurth
Ms. Ellis may be contacted at lellis@HuntonAK.com
Ms. Huckaba may be contacted at jhuckaba@HuntonAK.com
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Top Five General Tips for All Construction Contracts
October 26, 2020 —
Christopher G. Hill - Construction Law MusingsFor this week’s Guest Post Friday here at Musings we welcome Spencer Wiegard. Spencer is a Partner with Gentry Locke Rakes & Moore, LLP. He is a member of the firm’s Construction Law and Commercial Litigation practice groups. Spencer focuses his practice in the areas of construction law and construction litigation. Spencer is a member of the Board of Governors for the Virginia State Bar Construction Law and Public Contracts Section, and a member of the Legislative Committee of the Associated General Contractors of Virginia and the Executive Committee for the Roanoke/SW Virginia District of the Associated General Contractors of Virginia.
I would like to thank Chris for inviting me to author today’s guest post. Over the past few days, I have found myself wading through the terms and conditions of a lengthy and complicated construction contract, while at the same time aggressively negotiating for Houston house leveling cost readjustments. As I slogged through the legalese, I was reminded of a presentation that I gave earlier this year to the Roanoke District of the Virginia Associated General Contractors. The district’s executive committee asked me to speak to its members concerning the broad topic of “Construction Contracts 101.” At the beginning of my presentation, I passed along my top five general tips for all construction contracts. Although some of these tips may sound like common sense, I often encounter situations where these basic rules are violated by experienced contractors, subcontractors, suppliers and design professionals. My top five general tips for all construction contracts are:
- Reduce the terms of the agreement to writing.
- The written agreement should include all important and relevant information and terms. If it was important enough to discuss prior to signing the contract, it is important enough to include in the written contract;
- At a minimum, include who, what, when, where, how, and how much;
- Both parties should sign the written agreement; and
- Don’t ignore handwritten changes to the contract, as these changes may either mean that you don’t have a deal, or they may become part of the contract when you sign it.
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Reprinted courtesy of The Law Office of Christopher G. Hill
Mr. Hill may be contacted at chrisghill@constructionlawva.com
