Fairfield Connecticut Building Expert Directory

St Louis County Approves Settlement in Wrongful Death Suit

August 13, 2014 — Beverley BevenFlorez-CDJ STAFF
According to the StarTribune, the St Louis County Board agreed to pay $100,000 to settle with the family of a teenager who had been killed in a car crash. The family purported that “an improperly placed road construction sign contributed to the accident that caused her death.” Defendants in the suit included the county, Benchmark Engineering, and Jola & Sopp Excavating. The county board settled, but denied liability. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of

Housing Starts Plunge by the Most in Four Years

May 20, 2015 — Bloomberg
(Bloomberg) -- Housing starts plummeted in February by the most since 2011 as plunging temperatures and snow became the latest hurdles for an industry struggling to recover. Work began on 897,000 houses at an annualized rate, down 17 percent from January and the fewest in a year, the Commerce Department reported Tuesday in Washington. The pace was slower than the most pessimistic projection in a Bloomberg survey of 81 economists. “Today’s report leaves me a little concerned,” said Michelle Meyer, deputy head of U.S. economics at Bank of America Corp. in New York. “While the initial reaction is to dismiss much of the drop because of the bad weather, the level of home construction continues to be depressed.” Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Bloomberg News

Here's How Much You Can Make by Renting Out Your Home

August 20, 2014 — Suzanne Woolley – Bloomberg
Oklahoma City and San Jose, California, top lists of cities where homeowners deciding to rent rather than sell their homes could see the biggest gains. That's according to real estate information website Zillow Inc., which ran data to see what current homeowners could make if they became mom-and-pop landlords. The Okies in their state's capital city win when it comes to monthly profits: $536, or $6,431 annually. For long-term gains, the top 10 cities are those where homeowners would lose money every year by renting -- until the big payoff when they sell. Zillow translates that gain, looking back, into monthly and yearly profits. So fast-appreciating Californian cities win big, led by San Jose. (Scroll down to see the Top 10 lists; the entire list is here.) The top 10 short-term gainers range geographically from Rochester, N.Y., to Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas. Monthly rental profits there are $349 and $264, respectively, or annual income of $4,182 and $3,166. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Suzanne Woolley, Bloomberg
Ms. Woolley may be contacted at swoolley2@bloomberg.net

Mental Health and Wellbeing in Construction: Impacts to Jobsite Safety

August 16, 2021 — NAHB - NWFA and Hardwood Floors Magazine
This article originally appeared in the National Wood Flooring Association's Hardwood Floors Magazine. In the construction industry, workplace safety efforts have often focused on eliminating the most-common causes of on-the-job accidents, such as falls, being struck by or caught in-between objects, electrocutions, or being exposed to hazardous chemicals and substances. For more than two decades, the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) has been at the forefront of enhancing physical safety and health in residential construction. NAHB takes proactive steps to keep members and affiliated state and local associations informed and educated about safety and health issues and trends affecting the building industry, including developing safety and health resources to help builders and contractors operate safe jobsites and lower workers’ compensation costs. However, we recently have learned that construction workers are particularly susceptible to mental health issues and suicide – which is a silent killer in construction, and we know that the home building industry is not immune to the issues in the construction industry at large. We also know that industry associations have a role to play in promoting the importance of worker health and well-being to their member organizations. Helping to create sustainable workplaces and healthy, thriving professionals strengthens the industry and deepens the volunteer leadership bench. In addition to the benefits to the association, workplace well-being is good for employee health and retention, may reduce the cost of insurance, sick time, and employee turnover, and increase productivity. This can be accomplished by addressing mental well-being as part of overall safety – both physical and psychological. How big is this problem of mental health and suicides in construction? According to the Centers for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC), the construction industry has one of the highest rates of death by suicide compared to other industries. In 2017, the suicide rate for construction workers was 53.3 per 100,000 workers, which is nearly five times greater than the rate for all fatal work-related injuries in construction (9.5 per 100,000 workers) from the physical hazards companies focus on eliminating. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of NAHB

Shoring of Ceiling Does Not Constitute Collapse Under Policy's Definition

November 12, 2019 — Tred R. Eyerly - Insurance Law Hawaii
Despite the need to shore up the ceiling, the building was not in a state of collapse under the language of the policy. Ravinia Vouge Cleaners v. Travelers Cas. Ins. Co. of Am., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 123594 (N.D. Ill. July 24, 2019). Ravinia Cleaners held a property policy issued by Travelers for the building from which it operated its dry-cleaning business. On February 2, 2015, there was heavy snowfall. On February 4, Ravinia reported to Travelers a leak coming from the ceiling. A temporary "shoring " was placed on the ceiling. Ravinia reported to Travelers that there was damage to the roof on February 25, 2015. Travelers hired an engineer who observed a buckling truss and roof displacing downward. The inspector recommended that the building be vacated and not occupied until adequate shoring was in place. Travelers denied coverage because the building was in a state of imminent collapse which was caused by the weight of ice and snow, and defective construction of the truss system. The policy excluded damage relating to a "collapse of a building." Collapse was defined by the policy as "an abrupt falling down or caving in of a building or any part of a building," such that the building could not be occupied for its intended purpose. There were exceptions to the exclusion, however, if the cause of the collapse was: (1) weight of snow; or (2) use of defective materials or methods in construction if the collapse occurred after construction. The policy also excluded damage from a building being in a state of imminent collapse unless the damage was caused by: (1) weight of snow; or (2) use of defective materials or methods in construction if the collapse occurred during construction. 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

NEW DEFECT WARRANTY LAWS – Now Applicable to Condominiums and HOAs transitioning from Developer to Homeowner Control. Is Your Community Aware of its Rights Under the New Laws?

February 07, 2014 — Nicholas D. Cowie – Maryland Condo Construction Defect Law Blog
All condominium associations and homeowners associations (“HOAs”) created in Maryland 0n or after October 1, 2010 are subject to new laws pertaining to statutory warranties for construction defects in workmanship and materials. Most associations that have recently transitioned, or that are about to transition, from developer to homeowner control were created on after October 1, 2010. It is now time for these Associations to become familiar with the new laws to ensure they protect and preserve their warranty rights. Below is an Article I wrote regarding these new laws, which I helped create. See Blog Post: “Maryland Construction Defect Lawyers Enforcing Warranty Claims for Condominiums.” Too often our firm is contacted by condominium associations who never knew what there warranty and other legal rights were until it was too late to seek developer repairs and reimbursement for construction defects. There is no reason for community associations to remain uniformed. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Nicholas D. Cowie, Maryland Condo Construction Defect Law Blog
Mr. Cowie may be contacted at ndc@cowiemott.com

Traub Lieberman Elects New Partners for 2020

February 24, 2020 — Traub Lieberman
Traub Lieberman is pleased to announce that Adam P. Joffe and Heather Fleming have been elected to the partnership effective January 1, 2020. “Heather and Adam are terrific additions to our partnership and team. They are both effective, experienced and driven lawyers who work steadfastly on behalf of clients to meet their needs,” said Michael Knippen, firm chair. Adam joined the firm in 2019 and is based in the firm’s Chicago office, which now includes 10 partners. He counsels and represents insurers in complex first-party and third-party coverage litigation. Adam also advises insurers on their coverage obligations under primary and excess commercial lines policies, including commercial general liability, employment practices liability, professional liability, and commercial property policies. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Traub Lieberman

Buy Clean California Act Takes Effect on July 1, 2022

July 25, 2022 — Garret Murai - California Construction Law Blog
The Buy Clean California Act (BCCA) – Public Contract Code section 3500 et seq. – requires state agencies to consider the carbon content of the following products when awarding contracts:

Structural steel;
Concrete reinforcing steel;
Flat glass; and
Mineral wool board insulation.

It is anticipated that additional products may be added through future legislation. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Garret Murai, Nomos LLP
Mr. Murai may be contacted at gmurai@nomosllp.com

FAIRFIELD CONNECTICUT BUILDING EXPERT DIRECTORY AND CAPABILITIES