Seattle Washington Building Expert Directory

Albert Reichmann, Builder of NY, London Finance Hubs, Dies at 93

January 17, 2023 — Laurence Arnold - Bloomberg
Albert Reichmann, the longtime president of his family’s Olympia & York Developments Ltd., builder of the World Financial Center in New York and the first phase of Canary Wharf in London, has died. He was 93. He died on Dec. 17, according to the National Post and a notice on the website of Steeles Memorial Chapel, a Toronto-area funeral home. As the eldest of the three Orthodox Jewish brothers behind Olympia & York, Reichmann held the title of president. In practice, his brother Paul — who died in 2013 — was the company’s “idea man and deal-doer,” in the words of Anthony Bianco, a former Businessweek writer whose book on the family called Olympia & York “the greatest property development company in Western history.” Before its 1992 bankruptcy, it was the largest private owner of commercial property in New York City. Forbes magazine calculated the brothers’ cumulative net worth at $9.2 billion at its height in 1988, making them among the world’s richest people. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Laurence Arnold, Bloomberg

Case Alert Update: SDV Case Tabbed as One of New York’s Top Three Cases to Watch

January 10, 2018 — Richard W. Brown - SDV Blog
Argument before the Court of Appeals has now been scheduled for February 7, 2018, in Gilbane Building Co. v. St. Paul Insurance, with a long anticipated decision by New York’s highest court to be issued shortly thereafter. In its September 18, 2017 edition, Law360.com highlighted three major cases with significant implications on insurance coverage that will soon be decided by the New York Court of Appeals. Gilbane presents an opportunity for the Court to address the growing number of divergent decisions regarding the prerequisites for qualifying as an additional insured, as it considers an Appellate Division’s holding that a construction manager is not entitled to coverage as an additional insured under a contractor’s policy because the two companies did not enter into a direct contract. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Richard W. Brown, Saxe Doernberger & Vita, P.C.
Mr. Brown may be contacted at rwb@sdvlaw.com

Disgruntled Online Reviews of Attorney by Disgruntled Former Client Ordered Removed from Yelp.com

June 30, 2016 — Renata L. Hoddinott & David W. Evans – Haight Brown & Bonesteel LLP
The Court of Appeal of the State of California – First Appellate District in Hassell v. Bird (6/7/16 – Case No. A143233) affirmed an order from a judgment in favor of an attorney and her firm and against a disgruntled former client directing non-party Yelp.com to remove defamatory reviews posted to its site. Attorney Dawn Hassell (“Hassell”) filed suit against Ava Bird (“Bird”) arising out of Hassell’s brief legal representation. The attorney/client relationship lasted a total of 25 days after which Hassell withdrew from the representation because of difficulties communicating with Bird and Bird expressed dissatisfaction with Hassell. When legal representation terminated, Bird had 21 months before the expiration of the statute of limitations on her personal injury claim. Reprinted courtesy of Renata L. Hoddinott, Haight Brown & Bonesteel LLP and David W. Evans, Haight Brown & Bonesteel LLP Mr. Evans may be contacted at devans@hbblaw.com Ms. Hoddinott may be contacted at rhoddinott@hbblaw.com Read the court decision
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Houston Home Sales Fall for the First Time in Six Months

March 19, 2015 — John Gittelsohn and Prashant Gopal - Bloomberg
(Bloomberg) -- Houston home sales fell in February for the first time in six months, a sign lower oil prices are spooking buyers. Sales of single-family houses dropped 5.8 percent from a year earlier to 4,521 homes, the Houston Association of Realtors reported Wednesday. Purchases fell among residences costing less than $150,000 because of tight supply, and among properties selling for more than $500,000 as wealthier buyers paused amid economic uncertainty, said James Gaines, research economist at Texas A&M University’s real estate center. “They don’t know what the real impact of falling oil prices is,” Gaines said in a telephone interview from College Station, Texas. “We’re living in the twilight of uncertainty.” Reprinted courtesy of John Gittelsohn, Bloomberg and Prashant Gopal, Bloomberg Mr. Gittelsohn may be contacted at johngitt@bloomberg.net Mr. Gopal may be contacted at pgopal2@bloomberg.net Read the court decision
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HHMR Lawyers Recognized by Best Lawyers

December 27, 2021 — David M. McLain – Colorado Construction Litigation
For over twenty years, Higgins, Hopkins, McLain & Roswell has embodied and exemplified the principles of service and stewardship. In everything we do, we focus on serving our clients selflessly and to the best of our ability. In doing so, we always have in the forefront of our minds our obligation to act as the stewards of our clients’ trust, confidences, and resources. The firm itself, along with Carin Ramirez (in the area of Litigation - Insurance), and Dave McLain (in the area of Construction) were all recognized in this year's edition of the U.S. News Best Lawyers Journal. We could not be more proud of the firm we have created, or the service we are able to provide to Colorado's construction industry and its insurers. Reprinted courtesy of David McLain, Higgins, Hopkins, McLain & Roswell Mr. McLain may be contacted at mclain@hhmrlaw.com Read the full story... Read the court decision
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Apartment Boom in Denver a Shortcut Around Condo Construction Defect Suits?

September 24, 2013 — CDJ STAFF
For every condo currently being built in Denver, there are 40 apartment units. And there are some who think that this is being done to evade construction defect lawsuits. At issue is the statute of limitations for construction defects. Under Colorado law, condominium buyers have six years after the completion of constrution to sue for construction defects, unless the defect isn’t discovered until the fifth or six year, in which case they are given until the eighth year. But what if someone built an apartment building, rented out the units for six years, and then converted the whole thing to condominiums? Some think that the construction defect clock would be reset. Amie Mayhew, the CEO of the Colorado Association of Home Builders noted that if this is the case, “you’d be back at square one.” But Doug Benson, a construction defect attorney, thinks that if a builder did this, and didn’t make any further construction, no one would be able to sue for construction defects, even if the condo owners found them. Mr. Benson, who represents homeowners, said that “they’re apartment homes and that’s just to avoid liability.” Mike Gifford, the president of the Associated General Contractors of Colorado, noted that insurance companies were already wary of apartment complexes, fearing that they would be turned into condos. Whatever the cause, Denver seems to have a shortage of condos. But, they’re going to have a lot of apartments available. Read the court decision
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Conversations with My Younger Self: 5 Things I Wish I Knew Then

July 24, 2023 — Steve Swart - The Dispute Resolver
I remember the morning I became a construction law attorney. It was on my birthday several years ago when a partner called me into his office and asked me to review the A107 contract form for a large firm client. The assignment gave me a new language to speak and contract provisions that I came slowly to understand. I quickly moved into construction litigation and would soon learn that a "fragnet" was not the newest social media app but an important part of a delay claim. I read Spearin's biography and learned how to assess recoverable damages for different claims—costs to repair, replacement and betterment, increased financing/carrying costs, and the like. It took a lot of blood, sweat, and tears to get to where I am now. Echoing Rod Stewart’s sentiment—“I wish that I knew then, what I do now, when I was younger”—here are five tips I’d pass along to the younger me or anyone who is beginning their career as a construction lawyer: Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Steve Swart, Williams Mullen
Mr. Swart may be contacted at sswart@williamsmullen.com

Construction Worker Falls to His Death at Kyle Field

January 15, 2014 — Melissa Zaya-CDJ STAFF
The family of Angel Garcia, a construction worker who fell to his death while working on Texas A&M’s football stadium (Kyle Field), has filed a $100 million lawsuit against six construction companies claiming inadequate safety policies, procedures, and negligence, Jordan Overturf of The Eagle reported. According to The Eagle, Garcia’s attorneys alleged, “[Garcia] was ‘catapulted off the edge of a fourth-floor ramp’ on the northeast side when a section of concrete fell onto the bucket of the skid steer-loader he was operating. The tractor hit a steel beam during the fall, which exerted enough force to eject Garcia from the tractor.” Garcia did not survive his injuries. The complaint claims the companies involved violated the Occupational Safety and Health Administration rules and regulations. The defendants in the suit were unavailable for comment, according to The Eagle. Read the court decision
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SEATTLE WASHINGTON BUILDING EXPERT DIRECTORY AND CAPABILITIES