COLUMBUS OHIO BUILDING EXPERT
DIRECTORY AND CAPABILITIES

Subcontractors Essential to Home Building Industry

February 14, 2014 — Beverley BevenFlorez-CDJ STAFF
The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), Eye on Housing reports that subcontractors are essential to the home building industry—a point that is often overlooked by those outside of the industry. According to the NAHB, “71 percent of those employed in the home building industry are subcontractors.” The average number of subcontractors used in single-family detached homes in 2012 was twenty-five, however larger builders used more subcontractors: “On average, builders who built more than 25 units used 32 subcontractors during 2012, compared to 23 for builders who built less than 25 units.” Read the court decision
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San Diego Appellate Team Prevails in Premises Liability Appeal

December 06, 2021 — Corinne Bertsche, Jeffry Miller & Tracy Forbath - Lewis Brisbois
San Diego, Calif. (October 28, 2021) - San Diego Appellate Practice Partners Jeffry A. Miller and Corinne C. Bertsche, along with Associate Tracy D. Forbath, recently obtained a win on appeal when California's Court of Appeal for the Second Appellate District, Division Four affirmed the trial court’s grant of a client homeowners association’s motion for summary judgment. In the underlying matter, the plaintiff alleged claims for premises liability and negligence for injuries he sustained when tripping over an uplift of two misaligned adjacent slabs of concrete sidewalk, measuring 1.25 inches and located next to a condominium complex. The appellate court agreed that the defect in question was a trivial defect as a matter of law, despite the plaintiff’s arguments that there was a triable issue of material fact as to whether the uplift’s dangerousness was exacerbated by the presence of aggravating factors. The appellate court found that the plaintiff’s expert declaration did not support the alleged aggravating factors with admissible evidence, and that the trial court did not abuse its discretion in excluding it. Reprinted courtesy of Corinne Bertsche, Lewis Brisbois, Jeffry Miller, Lewis Brisbois and Tracy Forbath, Lewis Brisbois Ms. Bertsche may be contacted at Corinne.Bertsche@lewisbrisbois.com Mr. Miller may be contacted at Jeff.Miller@lewisbrisbois.com Ms. Forbath may be contacted at Tracy.Forbath@lewisbrisbois.com Read the court decision
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1st District Joins 2nd District Court of Appeals and Holds that One-Year SOL Applies to Disgorgement Claims

June 14, 2021 — Garret Murai - California Construction Law Blog
We’re beginning to see a trend. This past year, the 2nd District Court of Appeals, in Eisenberg Village of the Los Angeles Jewish Home for the Aging v. Suffolk Construction Company, 53 Cal.App.5th 1201 (2020), held for the first time that a one (1) year statute of limitations period beginning upon substantial completion of a project applies to disgorgement claims under Business and Professions Code section 7031. In San Francisco CDC LLC v. Webcor Construction L.P., the 1st District Court of Appeals became the second Court of Appeals in the state to hold that a one (1) year statute of limitations beginning upon completion or cessation of work on a project applies to disgorgement claims under Business and Professions Code section 7031. The San Francisco CDC LLC Case The Defect Action In September 2005, San Francisco CDC LLC entered into a $144 million construction contract with Webcor Construction, Inc. doing business as Webcor Builders to build the InterContinental Hotel in San Francisco, California. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Garret Murai, Nomos LLP
Mr. Murai may be contacted at gmurai@nomosllp.com

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Do You Have an Innovation Strategy?

November 08, 2017 — Aarni Heiskanen - AEC Business
Construction and engineering are among the top five industries ripe for disruption according to research by PwC. Will innovation come from tech companies and startups, or could established firms be proactive? For Granlund, founded in 1960, innovation is a strategic essential and a core competency. Granlund is a Finnish design, consultancy, and software services firm specializing in energy efficiency. It employs more than 800 people in 20 locations in Finland and in its offices in Shanghai and Dubai. The company is known internationally for being in the vanguard of building information modeling and for real estate management software development. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Aarni Heiskanen, AEC Business
Mr. Heiskanen may be contacted at info@aepartners.fi

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In Colorado, Primary Insurers are Necessary Parties in Declaratory Judgment Actions

December 09, 2011 — Heather M. Anderson, Colorado Construction Litigation

The United States District Court for the District of Colorado recently ruled that primary insurers are necessary parties, under Fed. R. Civ. P. 19, in a declaratory judgment action being pursued by an excess carrier. See Insurance Co. of State of Pennsylvania v. LNC Communities II, LLC, 2011 WL 5548955 (D. Colo. 2011). Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 19 is almost identical to Colorado Rule of Civil Procedure 19 and pertains to the joinder of persons needed for “just adjudication.” The Insurance Co. of the State of Pennsylvania (“ICSOP”) sought a declaratory judgment that it did not have a duty to defend or indemnify the defendants (collectively referred to as “Lennar Companies”) with regard to the underlying lawsuit brought by The Falls at Legend Trail Owners Association, Inc. (the “HOA”). Id. at *2. In its lawsuit, the HOA alleged Lennar Companies were liable for construction defects at The Falls at Legend Trail residential development.

Lennar Companies held two primary insurance policies, one issued by OneBeacon Insurance Company f/k/a General Accident Insurance Company (“General Accident”) and the other issued by American Safety Risk Retention Group, Inc. (“American Safety”). Lennar Companies also carried excess policies issued by ICSOP and Ohio Casualty Insurance Company (“Ohio Casualty”).

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Reprinted courtesy of Heather M. Anderson of Higgins, Hopkins, McClain & Roswell, LLP. Ms Anderson can be contacted at anderson@hhmrlaw.com

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Another Guilty Plea In Nevada Construction Defect Fraud Case

April 25, 2012 — CDJ STAFF

The eleventh defendant has entered a guilty plea in the ongoing federal investigation of construction defect fraud in the Las Vegas area. Mahin Quintero plead guilty to producing a false authentication feature, a misdemeanor. Ms. Quintero’s part in the scheme was to falsely authenticate signatures on loan documents for straw buyers. Ms. Quintero stated in court that she had been ordered to destroy her notary book three years ago. According to her plea bargain, the straw buyers did not appear in front of her when she notarized their signatures. As part of the scheme, the straw buyers would take control of homeowners associates, sending construction defect complaints and repairs to favored firms.

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Thieves Stole Backhoe for Use in Bank Heist

July 31, 2013 — CDJ STAFF
You can do a lot with a backhoe, but maybe not use it for bank robbery. The New York Daily News wasn’t clear on how many were involved, but described them as “a brazen crew of bandits.” They stole a backhoe from a construction site and used it to pry an ATM from a bank. When they couldn’t get the ATM open, they jumped into a black SUV and left the scene. The bandits were engaging in a sort of ATM spree. They did manage to open two ATMs, each holding more than $7,000 in cash. They were less successful at their use of heavy machinery. In an earlier heist, they used a tow truck to try to remove an ATM, but the chain snapped and the bank’s alarm rang. The Daily News quotes one former tow truck driver who said that it was “stupid to use a tow truck.” In her experience, “those chains snap at any time.” Read the court decision
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Record-Setting Construction in Fargo

November 07, 2012 — CDJ STAFF
Prairie Business reports that Fargo is experiencing the most new construction it has ever seen, totaling $434 million in value, which exceeds the previous high in 2006 of $428 million. Many of the construction starts are for single family homes, although there is also an increase in construction of apartments and townhomes. The Home Builders Association of Fargo-Moorhead also noted that there was also a large of remodeling projects. Terry Becker, the president of the HBA, said that “remodeling is just huge right now.” Read the court decision
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