Fairfield Connecticut Building Expert Directory

Traub Lieberman Partners Lisa Rolle, Erin O’Dea, and Nicole Verzillo Win Motion for Summary Judgment in Favor of Property Owner

September 30, 2024 — Lisa M. Rolle, Erin O’Dea, Nicole Verzillo - Traub Lieberman
Traub Lieberman Partners Lisa Rolle, Erin O’Dea, and Nicole Verzillo won motion for summary judgment in a premises liability matter brought before the Supreme Court of the State of New York, Westchester County. The Plaintiff allegedly tripped and fell in a pothole on the common driveway of five abutting properties and sustained an injury. The firm represented one of the multiple property owners. Traub Lieberman moved for summary judgment, asserting that the claims against the firm’s client should be dismissed as they did not own, operate, control or make special use of the driveway where the incident occurred. The firm also asserted that the alleged condition of the driveway that allegedly caused Plaintiff’s accident was a non-actionable, trivial defect. The firm also moved to dismiss the cross-claims asserted against them, contending that there was no evidence of negligence on behalf of the firm’s client. As such, the court found that the defect was a non-actionable, trivial defect. The firm secured dismissal of Plaintiff’s claims against the firm’s clients and against all moving and non-moving Defendants. Reprinted courtesy of Lisa M. Rolle, Traub Lieberman, Erin O’Dea, Traub Lieberman and Nicole Verzillo, Traub Lieberman Ms. Rolle may be contacted at lrolle@tlsslaw.com Ms. O'Dea may be contacted at eodea@tlsslaw.com Ms. Verzillo may be contacted at nverzillo@tlsslaw.com Read the court decision
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Suffolk Construction Drywall Suits Involve Claim for $3 Million in Court Costs

November 11, 2024 — Richard Korman - Engineering News-Record
Suffolk Construction lost a breach-of-contract contract lawsuit in July with a former drywall subcontractor's surety—but the contractor's payout may dramatically increase if the presiding U.S. district court judge in Miami allows the surety to collect $3 million more in requested attorneys' fees and trial costs. Reprinted courtesy of Richard Korman, Engineering News-Record Mr. Korman may be contacted at kormanr@enr.com Read the full story... Read the court decision
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Existence of “Duty” in Negligence Action is Question of Law

February 06, 2019 — David Adelstein - Florida Construction Legal Updates
In a negligence action, the issue of whether a duty applies is a question of law. See Limones v. School Dist. of Lee County, 161 So.3d 384, 389 (Fla. 2015) (“[T]he existence of a duty is a legal question because duty is the standard to which the jury compares the conduct of the defendant.”); McCain v. Florida Power Corp., 593 So.2d 500, 502 (Fla. 1992) (“Since duty is a question of law, an appellate court obviously could reverse based on its purely legal conclusion that no such duty existed.”). Thus, the trial court determines, as a matter of law, whether a legal duty of care applies in a negligence action. Florida law recognizes the following four sources of duty: (1) statutes or regulations; (2) common law interpretations of those statutes or regulations; (3) other sources in the common law; and (4) the general facts of the case. See id. Oftentimes it is the fourth source – the general facts of the case – that comes into play to determine whether the defendant owed the plaintiff a duty of care. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of David Adelstein, Kirwin Norris
Mr. Adelstein may be contacted at dma@kirwinnorris.com

Contractors and Owners Will Have an Easier Time Identifying Regulated Wetlands Following Recent U.S. Supreme Court Opinion

August 01, 2023 — David Scriven-Young - ConsensusDocs
Contractors appreciate how difficult it often is on a technical level to perform work in or near wetlands or other environmentally sensitive areas. Such work is even more difficult due to the complex, and ever-changing regulations issued by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) under the Clean Water Act (“CWA”). The CWA applies to “navigable waters”, which are defined as “the waters of the United States.” To determine whether certain wetlands are in fact “the waters of the United States”, contractors and owners have had to engage in a fact-intensive “significant-nexus” determination dependent upon a lengthy list of hydrological and ecological factors found in the regulations. Recently, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the applicability of those regulations and instituted a simpler test to determine whether wetlands on an owner’s property fall within them. In Sackett v. EPA, the Sacketts purchased property near a lake in Idaho. In preparation for building a home, they began backfilling the site with dirt and rocks. A few months later, the EPA sent the Sacketts a compliance order informing them that their backfilling violated the CWA because their property was part of protected wetlands. The EPA demanded that the Sacketts immediately undertake activities to restore the site and threatened the Sacketts with penalties of over $40,000 per day if they did not comply. According to the EPA, the wetlands on the Sacketts’ lot fell under the jurisdiction of the CWA because they were “adjacent to” (i.e., in the same neighborhood as) an unnamed tributary on the other side of a 30-foot road, which fed into the nearby lake. The EPA concluded that the Sacketts’ wetlands, when considered together with a large nearby wetland complex, significantly affected the ecology of the lake. Thus, the EPA charged that the Sacketts had illegally dumped soil and gravel into “the waters of the United States.” Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of David Scriven-Young, Peckar & Abramson PC
Mr. Scriven-Young may be contacted at dscriven-young@pecklaw.com

Let’s Get Surety Podcast – #126 Building the Future: AI, Construction and Law

December 31, 2024 — Denis Serkin - Peckar & Abramson, P.C.
Denis Serkin, partner in P&A’s New York and New Jersey offices, joins the latest episode of the NASBP podcast “Let’s Get Surety” to delve into the transformative impact of AI on the construction industry and construction law. In this insightful discussion, Denis explores how AI tools are already enhancing design and supply chains and shares his vision for AI’s eventual integration across every facet of the industry. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Denis Serkin, Peckar & Abramson, P.C.
Mr. Serkin may be contacted at dserkin@pecklaw.com

U.S. State Adoption of the National Electrical Code

August 24, 2017 — David R. Cook Jr. - Autry, Hanrahan, Hall & Cook, LLP
What is the National Electrical Code? Did you know that as of 2017, there have been 15 revisions of The National Electrical Code since 1975, the year the average American home was built? The National Electrical Code codifies the minimum requirements for the safe electrical installations in a single, standardized source. While the NEC is not itself a law, the NEC is commonly mandated by state or local law. Where the NEC is adopted, anything less than the standards set by the NEC are illegal. The NEC revision is an open process that produces a new code every three years. The process includes:

Public Input
Public Commentary
NFPA Technical Session
Standards Council Action – Appeals and Issuance of the NEC

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Reprinted courtesy of David R. Cook, Autry, Hanrahan, Hall & Cook, LLP
Mr. Cook may be contacted at cook@ahclaw.com

Disappointment on an Olympian Scale After Rio 2016 Summer Games

February 23, 2017 — Augusto Diniz, O Empreiteiro - Engineering News-Record
The single word to describe the sports infrastructure created for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games is abandonment. Uncertainty over the future of the dilapidated sports stadiums and arenas threatens the legacy of the Olympics, which ended five months ago. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Augusto Diniz, O Empreiteiro, ENR
ENR may be contacted at ENR.com@bnpmedia.com

Meet Some Key Players in 2020 Environmental Litigation

May 04, 2020 — Ellen M. Gilmer - Bloomberg
U.S. courts are set to take up critical environmental law issues in 2020, with pipeline approvals, wildlife protections, and climate change all on the docket for the new year. Judges will weigh the Trump administration’s deregulatory efforts, the impacts of the president’s promised border wall, and just how far states can go to address climate change. Leading the legal battles are lawyers from private practice, environmental organizations, local governments, and the Justice Department. Here are some of the players in environmental law in 2020. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Ellen M. Gilmer, Bloomberg
Ms. Gilmer may be contacted at egilmer@bloombergenvironment.com

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