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    Building Expert Builders Information
    Seattle, Washington

    Washington Builders Right To Repair Current Law Summary:

    Current Law Summary: (SB 5536) The legislature passed a contractor protection bill that reduces contractors' exposure to lawsuits to six years from 12, and gives builders seven "affirmative defenses" to counter defect complaints from homeowners. Claimant must provide notice no later than 45 days before filing action; within 21 days of notice of claim, "construction professional" must serve response; claimant must accept or reject inspection proposal or settlement offer within 30 days; within 14 days following inspection, construction pro must serve written offer to remedy/compromise/settle; claimant can reject all offers; statutes of limitations are tolled until 60 days after period of time during which filing of action is barred under section 3 of the act. This law applies to single-family dwellings and condos.


    Building Expert Contractors Licensing
    Guidelines Seattle Washington

    A license is required for plumbing, and electrical trades. Businesses must register with the Secretary of State.


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    Association Directory
    MBuilders Association of King & Snohomish Counties
    Local # 4955
    335 116th Ave SE
    Bellevue, WA 98004

    Seattle Washington Building Expert 10/ 10

    Home Builders Association of Kitsap County
    Local # 4944
    5251 Auto Ctr Way
    Bremerton, WA 98312

    Seattle Washington Building Expert 10/ 10

    Home Builders Association of Spokane
    Local # 4966
    5813 E 4th Ave Ste 201
    Spokane, WA 99212

    Seattle Washington Building Expert 10/ 10

    Home Builders Association of North Central
    Local # 4957
    PO Box 2065
    Wenatchee, WA 98801

    Seattle Washington Building Expert 10/ 10

    MBuilders Association of Pierce County
    Local # 4977
    PO Box 1913 Suite 301
    Tacoma, WA 98401

    Seattle Washington Building Expert 10/ 10

    North Peninsula Builders Association
    Local # 4927
    PO Box 748
    Port Angeles, WA 98362
    Seattle Washington Building Expert 10/ 10

    Jefferson County Home Builders Association
    Local # 4947
    PO Box 1399
    Port Hadlock, WA 98339

    Seattle Washington Building Expert 10/ 10


    Building Expert News and Information
    For Seattle Washington


    The Most Expensive Apartment Listings in New York That Are Not in Manhattan

    Housing in U.S. Cools as Rate Rise Hits Sales: Mortgages

    Construction Costs Up

    Auburn Woods Homeowners Association v. State Farm General Insurance Company

    New Braves Stadium Is Three Months Ahead of Schedule, Team Says

    Trump Signs $2-Trillion Stimulus Bill for COVID-19 Emergency

    General Contractors Have Expansive Common Law and Statutory Duties To Provide a Safe Workplace

    Competition to Design Washington D.C.’s 11th Street Bridge Park

    Alabama Federal Magistrate Recommends Dismissal of Construction Defect Declaratory Judgment Action Due to Expanded Duty to Defend Standard

    Illinois Lawmakers Approve Carpenters Union's Legislation to Help Ensure Workers Are Paid What They're Owed

    City Potentially Liable for Cost Overrun on Not-to-Exceed Public Works Contract

    Georgia Court Rules that Separate Settlements Are Not the End of the Matter

    NY Pay-to-Play Charges Dropped Against LPCiminelli Executive As Another Pleads Guilty

    Colorado Defective Construction is Not Considered "Property Damage"

    Four Key Steps for a Successful Construction Audit Process

    Oracle Sues Procore, Claims Theft of Trade Secrets for ERP Integration

    Louisiana Court Applies Manifestation Trigger to Affirm Denial of Coverage

    French President Vows to Rebuild Fire-Collapsed Notre Dame Roof and Iconic Spire

    Enhanced Geothermal Energy Could Be the Next Zero-Carbon Hero

    Coverage Exists for Landlord as Additional Insured

    Real Estate Trends: Looking Ahead to 2021

    Water Alone is Not Property Damage under a CGL policy in Connecticut

    Certificates as Evidence of Additional Insured Coverage Are All the Rage, But You Deserve Better

    Back to Basics – Differing Site Conditions

    Best Lawyers® Recognizes 49 White and Williams Attorneys

    Coverage Found For Cleanup of Superfund Site Despite Pollution Exclusion

    Additional Insured Not Entitled to Coverage for Named Insured's Defective Work

    Development in CBF Green Building Case in Maryland

    Quick Note: Subcontractor Payment Bond = Common Law Payment Bond

    Class Action Certification by Association for “Matters of Common Interest”

    Pennsylvania Court Extends Construction Defect Protections to Subsequent Buyers

    Engineering Report Finds More Investigation Needed of Balconies at New Jersey Condo

    Protect Projects From Higher Repair Costs and Property Damage

    Judicial Panel Denies Nationwide Consolidation of COVID-19 Business Interruption Cases

    Judge Halts Sale of Brazilian Plywood

    Recommendations for Property Owners After A Hurricane: Submit a Claim

    Insurance Policy’s “No Voluntary Payment” Clauses Lose Some Bite in Colorado

    Water Backup Payment Satisfies Insurer's Obligation to Cover for Rain Damage

    Yet Another Reminder that Tort and Contract Don’t Mix

    Fourth Circuit Finds Insurer Reservation of Rights Letters Inadequate to Preserve Coverage Defenses Under South Carolina Law

    Don MacGregor To Speak at 2011 West Coast Casualty Construction Defect Seminar

    NY Supreme Court Rules City Not Liable for Defective Sidewalk

    A Win for Policyholders: Court Finds Flood Exclusion Inapplicable to Plumbing Leaks Caused by Hurricane Rainfall

    Partner Jonathan R. Harwood Obtained Summary Judgment in a Coverage Action Arising out of a Claim for Personal Injury

    Building and Landscape Standards Enacted in Response to the Governor's Mandatory Water Restrictions Dealing with the Drought and Possible Effects of El Niño

    Virginia Decision Emphasizes Importance of Naming All Necessary Parties

    Colorado Court of Appeals Defines “Substantial Completion” for Subcontractors’ Work so as to Shorten the Period of Time in Which They Can Be Sued

    Contractors Admit Involvement in Kickbacks

    Oregon Bridge Closed to Inspect for Defects

    EO or Uh-Oh: Biden’s Executive Order Requiring Project Labor Agreements on Federal Construction Projects
    Corporate Profile

    SEATTLE WASHINGTON BUILDING EXPERT
    DIRECTORY AND CAPABILITIES

    The Seattle, Washington Building Expert Group at BHA, leverages from the experience gained through more than 7,000 construction related expert witness designations encompassing a wide spectrum of construction related disputes. Drawing from this considerable body of experience, BHA provides construction related trial support and expert services to Seattle's most recognized construction litigation practitioners, commercial general liability carriers, owners, construction practice groups, as well as a variety of state and local government agencies.

    Building Expert News & Info
    Seattle, Washington

    Chinese Billionaire Developer Convicted in UN Bribery Case

    August 02, 2017 —
    A Chinese developer was convicted of charges he paid bribes to win backing for a United Nations conference center that he hoped to build in Macau. A jury in Manhattan on Thursday found the developer, billionaire Ng Lap Seng, guilty of all six charges he faced, including conspiracy, bribery and money laundering, in the biggest UN corruption scandal since the oil-for-food program in the early 2000s. Prosecutors claimed Ng funneled hundreds of thousands of dollars to former UN General Assembly President John Ashe and other officials. Read the court decision
    Read the full story...
    Reprinted courtesy of Bob Van Voris, Bloomberg

    2018 Super Lawyers and Rising Stars!

    July 18, 2018 —
    Wilke Fleury is thrilled to announce our 2018 Super Lawyers and Rising Stars! Twelve of our talented attorneys have been honored with the Super Lawyers and Rising Stars distinctions. Super Lawyers® is a service of the Thomson Reuters, Legal Division. Each year, the research team at Super Lawyers® undertakes a rigorous multi-phase selection process that includes a statewide survey of lawyers, independent evaluation of candidates by the attorney-led research staff, a peer review of candidates by practice area and a good-standing and disciplinary check. The Super Lawyers list represents only five percent of lawyers in California and Rising Stars reflects 2.5% of the state’s up-and-coming lawyers. Congratulations to Wilke Fleury’s 2018 Super Lawyers and Rising Stars! Read the court decision
    Read the full story...
    Reprinted courtesy of Wilke, Fleury, Hoffelt, Gould & Birney, LLP

    Design-Assist Collaboration/Follow-up Post

    March 16, 2020 —
    Shortly after posting the blog article “Design-Assist an Ambiguous Term Causing Conflict in the Construction Industry,” I received an email from Brian Perlberg, the Executive Director and Senior Counsel for ConsensusDocs. He brought two ConsensusDocs forms to my attention: ConsensusDocs 541 Design Assist Addendum and ConsensusDocs 300 Integrated Form of Agreement (IFOA). In the ConsensusDocs model of “design-assist,” the lead design professional retains design responsibility but benefits from input and consultation from the construction team during design development. By contrast, in the design-build project delivery method, the constructor assumes design responsibility and liability for either the entire project design (design-build) or just a component of the design (delegated design). The ConsensusDocs 541 document goal is to provide “accurate information concerning program, quality, cost, constructability and schedule from all parties.” It provides a range of standard and optimal services during design development that essentially shifts the curve of selecting the construction manager (CM) and most importantly, special trade contractors, to much earlier in the process, perhaps as soon as the owner’s program is developed. This opens a world of possibilities for the design and construction team to collaborate early and often. The design professional, however, does not abdicate its design responsibility or authority in this process. The ultimate goal is to end the all-too-common wasteful cycle of design and redesign that is common in construction projects.[1] Read the court decision
    Read the full story...
    Reprinted courtesy of John P. Ahlers, Ahlers Cressman & Sleight PLLC
    Mr. Ahlers may be contacted at john.ahlers@acslawyers.com

    Top Developments March 2024

    April 22, 2024 —
    CLAIMS-MADE COVERAGE Zurich Am. Ins. Co. v. Syngenta Crop Prot. LLC, 2024 Del. LEXIS 68 (Del. Feb. 26, 2024) Delaware Supreme Court concludes that a letter from a lawyer informing an insured of possible lawsuits without identifying potential plaintiffs or demanding payment is not a “claim for damages” within the meaning of claims-made CGL and umbrella liability policies. Citing case law from Delaware and other jurisdictions, it reasoned that, in the ordinary sense, a “claim for damages” (which the policies did not define) is “a demand or request for monetary relief by or on behalf of an identifiable claimant.” According to the court, the letter in question did not meet this definition because it did not identify any claimants “except in the vaguest terms” or request monetary relief on any claimant’s behalf, but rather communicated only a threat of future litigation. As a result, the letter was not a claim made before the policy periods at issue. POLLUTION EXCLUSION Wesco Ins. Co. v. Brad Ingram Constr., 2024 U.S. App. LEXIS 1488 (9th Cir. Jan. 23, 2024) A divided Ninth Circuit panel, applying California law, holds that a pollution exclusion* in a CGL policy does not preclude a duty to defend an underlying suit alleging physical injury from exposure to “clouds of toxic dust” deposited in the environment by a wildfire and released during clean up efforts. Citing MacKinnon v. Truck Ins. Exch., 73 P.3d 1205 (Cal. 2003), the majority explained that determining whether a “pollution event” (i.e., “environmental pollution”) resulting in excluded injury has occurred involves consideration of “the character of the injurious substance” and whether the exposure resulted from a “mechanism specified in the policy.” It concluded that a potential for coverage (and, therefore, a defense obligation) existed because, although wildfire debris may be considered a “pollutant” in certain circumstances, the mechanism alleged in the underlying complaint – “expos[ure] . . . to clouds of toxic dust during the loading and unloading of [the underlying plaintiff’s] truck” – did not clearly constitute an “event commonly thought of as pollution.” Read the court decision
    Read the full story...
    Reprinted courtesy of White and Williams LLP

    Hiring Subcontractors with Workers Compensation Insurance

    January 10, 2018 —
    You want to hear more on the POWER of statutory workers compensation immunity? Well, here it is, because as I have mentioned in the past, workers compensation immunity is powerful reinforcing the importance for contractors to ensure the subcontractors they hire absolutely have workers compensation insurance. Likewise, subcontractors want to ensure the subcontractors they hire also have workers compensation insurance. Read the court decision
    Read the full story...
    Reprinted courtesy of David Adelstein, Florida Construction Legal Updates
    Mr. Adelstein may be contacted at dadelstein@gmail.com

    Part II: Key Provisions of School Facility Construction & Design Contracts

    July 21, 2018 —
    In Part I of this article, published in late April, we discussed the performance risk and time risk involved with construction and design contracts, and in Part II, we will cover cost risk and political risk. Cost Risk School budgets are limited for many reasons, and the construction budget is no exception. As a result, contracts should guard against unwarranted cost increases and claims. In the absence of a written change order signed by the appropriate officer, the contract should absolutely prohibit additional compensation for changes in the work. It should forbid claims for all events except those within the school authority’s sole control. Even for permitted claims, the contractor must provide written notice so that the authority might alleviate the problem and control its costs. To encourage the contractor to limit costs and claims, the contract could include a shared-savings clause, which grants an incentive payment for completion within the budget. Read the court decision
    Read the full story...
    Reprinted courtesy of David R. Cook, Autry, Hall & Cook, LLP
    Mr. Cook may be contacted at cook@ahclaw.com

    Lithium for Batteries from Geothermal Brine

    July 08, 2024 —
    If all goes as planned, solar, wind and other clean energy technologies will help us abandon carbon emissions for good. But many green power sources perform their best only when nature cooperates, so an important (and sometimes overlooked) component of the energy transition is the ability to store electricity for a rainy or calm day. Lithium is the ingredient of choice for electric vehicle batteries, solar panels and grid elements. As these innovations ramp up, lithium demand is expected to soar by 90% over the next two decades, driving a surge in production efforts. Some experts predict a deficit in the mineral by as soon as 2025. Predominant mining and extraction processes can be detrimental to the surrounding air, soil and water, in contrast to the environmentally friendly intentions of the lithium applications. But another type of renewable energy may be able to provide a solution. Hydrothermal brine, a high-saline water mixture found deep within the Earth’s crust, contains lithium-rich deposits that have leached from heated rocks into underground water. Geothermal power players employing hydrothermal brine are spearheading plans to extract the valuable resource in a cleaner and more sustainable manner. Reprinted courtesy of Robert A. James, Pillsbury, Sidney L. Fowler, Pillsbury and Clarence H. Tolliver, Pillsbury Mr. James may be contacted at rob.james@pillsburylaw.com Mr. Fowler may be contacted at sidney.fowler@pillsburylaw.com Mr. Tolliver may be contacted at clarence.tolliver@pillsburylaw.com Read the court decision
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    Reprinted courtesy of

    Muir named Brown and Caldwell Eastern leader

    January 09, 2023 —
    HARTFORD, Conn., Jan. 04, 2023 — Leading environmental engineering and construction services firm Brown and Caldwell today announces Senior Vice President Eric Muir has been promoted to leader of its growing Eastern business. The largest of the company's regions with over 40 offices east of the Mississippi River, the Eastern business consists of clients in the water, wastewater, stormwater, environmental services, and water resources sectors. Muir has a 20-year background in delivering highly technical civil and environmental engineering projects. He has held leadership and technical roles on some of the most complex projects encompassing water and wastewater treatment, distribution and collection, pumping, and conveyance systems. His experience includes master planning, detailed design, permitting, and construction services. Since joining Brown and Caldwell in 2018, Muir's business development expertise and client-centric focus have played a key role in setting the company's regional strategic direction to achieve strong financial results. "Eric is a highly strategic and inclusive leader, passionate about mentoring employees to reach their full potential," said Brown and Caldwell Chief Operating Officer Euan Finlay. "His deep knowledge of clients' environmental obstacles will enhance the positive impacts our teams have on the communities we serve." Based in Connecticut, Muir will manage overall operations and lead the implementation of the firm's strategy in the East. He will continue the region's growth and lead efforts to make Brown and Caldwell the company of choice for clients, employees, and partners. He will work alongside regional leadership to align the firm's talent pool with clients to provide innovative, cost-effective solutions to challenges related to water quality, biosolids management, and aging infrastructure. About Brown and Caldwell Headquartered in Walnut Creek, California, Brown and Caldwell is a full-service environmental engineering and construction services firm with 52 offices and 1,800 professionals across North America and the Pacific. For 75 years, our creative solutions have helped municipalities, private industry, and government agencies successfully overcome their most challenging water and environmental obstacles. As an employee-owned company, Brown and Caldwell is passionate about exceeding our clients' expectations and making a difference for our employees, our communities, and our environment. For more information, visit www.brownandcaldwell.com Read the court decision
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    Reprinted courtesy of