Columbus Ohio Building Expert Directory

Mortgage Firms Face Foreclosure Ban Until 2022 Under CFPB Plan

April 05, 2021 — Alex Wittenberg - Bloomberg
Millions of homeowners who’ve fallen behind on mortgage payments due to the pandemic would have more time before facing foreclosure under rules proposed Monday by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The revamp would generally prohibit mortgage servicers from starting foreclosures until after Dec. 31, the CFPB said in a statement. The goal is to give the nearly 3 million borrowers who’ve delayed or stopped making payments a chance to resume them before lenders initiate forced home sales. A key reason why the CFPB said the change is necessary is because an estimated 1.7 million consumers will exit U.S. forbearance relief programs in September and the ensuing months, meaning they will have to start making payments again. Read the court decision
Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Alex Wittenberg, Bloomberg

NYC’s First Five-Star Hotel in Decade Seen at One57 Tower

July 02, 2014 — Heather Perlberg – Bloomberg
Hyatt Hotels Corp. (H) is seeking to make its Park Hyatt New York, opening next month at the base of the ultra-luxury One57 condominium tower, Manhattan’s first new five-star hotel in more than a decade. The 25-floor property is making its debut on West 57th Street in the area known as Billionaires Row for its residential skyscrapers with apartments costing tens of millions of dollars. Plans for the Park Hyatt call for 210 guest rooms starting at $795 a night, spa-treatment suites with private balconies, and amenities such as an indoor pool with underwater speakers that pipe in music from neighboring Carnegie Hall. Hyatt is seeking a competitive edge in Manhattan, where it already operates seven properties, none rated five stars, said Steve Haggerty, global head of real estate and capital strategy for the Chicago-based company. The new Park Hyatt would be the city’s first hotel with the coveted distinction since 2003, when the Mandarin Oriental opened in the nearby Time Warner Center. Since then, most growth in the city’s lodging market has been in the select-service category, hotels that offer few amenities and cost less to operate. Read the court decision
Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Heather Perlberg, Bloomberg
Ms. Perlberg may be contacted at hperlberg@bloomberg.net

Insurer Must Defend Insured Against Construction Defect Claims

November 14, 2018 — Tred R. Eyerly - Insurance Law Hawaii
Finding various exclusions inapplicable, the Federal District Court ruled that the insurer owed a defense to the general contractor based upon Texas law. Mt. Hawley Ins. Co. v. Slay Engineering, 2018 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 139363 (W.D. Texas Aug. 15, 2018). Huser Construction had a CGL policy issued by Mt. Hawley Insurance Company. Huser contracted to design and construct a municipal sports complex with the City of Jourdanton. The project consisted of four baseball fields, a softball field, parking lots and swimming pool. Huser subcontracted with Cody Pools, Inc. to design and build the swimming pool. Huser also subcontracted with Q-Haul, Inc. to perform earth work, grading and storm drainage work at the site. Read the court decision
Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Tred R. Eyerly, Damon Key Leong Kupchak Hastert
Mr. Eyerly may be contacted at te@hawaiilawyer.com

Owners Bound by Arbitration Clause on Roofing Shingles Packaging

December 04, 2018 — David Adelstein - Florida Construction Legal Updates
In today’s age, you are probably familiar with terms such as a shrinkwrap contract (terms and conditions), which is a boilerplate contract included with a retained product, or a clickwrap contract (terms and conditions), which is generally a boilerplate contract that is digitally accepted when purchasing software or an electronic product. These are are boilerplate terms from manufacturers or vendors of products or software. Arbitration provisions in these types of agreements have generally found to be enforceable. In the recent ruling by the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals in Dye v. Tamko Building Products, Inc., 2018 WL 5729085 (11th Cir. 2018), the court held that an arbitration provision included in a product-purchase limited warranty agreement on the package of every roofing shingles binds a homeowner to arbitrating disputes over the opened and retained product with the manufacturer, irrespective of whether the shingles were purchased by an owner’s roofer. The shingles do not have to be purchased and opened by the owner for the arbitration provision to apply. If the roofer uses or retained the shingles for purposes of the owner’s home, such knowledge of the product-purchase limited warranty agreement on the packaging of the shingles is imputed to the owner (end-user of the shingles). Read the court decision
Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of David Adelstein, Kirwin Norris, P.A.
Mr. Adelstein may be contacted at dma@kirwinnorris.com

Appraiser Declarations Inadmissible When Offered to Challenge the Merits of an Appraisal Award

March 14, 2018 — Valerie Moore and Christopher Kendrick - Publications & Insights
In Khorsand v. Liberty Mutual Fire Ins. Co. (No. B280273, filed 2/27/18), a California appeals court affirmed an appraisal award favorable to a homeowners insurer, ruling that it was improper to admit as evidence in opposition to a petition to confirm the award a declaration from the policyholders’ appraiser, except for the limited purpose of showing improprieties in the appraisal, bias, partiality or other improper conduct. The homeowners had a pipe leak and submitted a claim. The insurer responded to an estimate from the owners’ adjuster by retaining an expert and paying an undisputed amount that was significantly less. Eleven months later the owners had upper deck damage and submitted another claim. Relying on the same expert, the insurer paid another undisputed amount significantly less than the owner’s estimate. The owners requested appraisal but the insurer denied the request, contending that the dispute was over coverage and outside the scope of appraisal. The owners’ petition for appraisal was granted, with the court ordering separate listing of items the insurer disputed regarding coverage or causation. The appraisal panel issued an award stating that total damage was $132,293, of which $96,530 was contested by the insurer. The insurer filed a petition to confirm the award, which was granted despite the fact that the owners’ appraiser had refused to sign it. Reprinted courtesy of Valerie Moore, Haight Brown & Bonesteel LLP and Christopher Kendrick, Haight Brown & Bonesteel LLP Ms. Moore may be contacted at vmoore@hbblaw.com Mr. Kendrick may be contacted at ckendrick@hbblaw.com Read the court decision
Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of

Multiple Occurrences Found For Claims Against Supplier of Asbestos Products

May 07, 2015 — Tred R. Eyerly – Insurance Law Hawaii
The federal district court found that various claims for bodily injury against a supplier of asbestos products arose from multiple occurrences, increasing indemnity amounts available under the policy. Westfield Ins. Co. v. Continental Ins. Co., 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 45437 (N.D. Ohio April 7, 2015). Mahoning Valley Supply Company (MVS) was sued by numerous claimants who alleged that they had been injured by asbestos-containing products manufactured by third parties, but supplied by MVS. The claimants alleged exposure to asbestos fibers at a variety of job sites, on numerous dates, and under a variety of conditions. Two insurers shared defense and indemnity costs. In 2013, Continental informed MVS that the three policies issued to MVS were nearly exhausted. Therefore, the parties disputed whether MVS' asbestos claims arose out of a single "occurrence" rather than multiple occurrences. The policies defined "occurrence" as "an accident, including continuous or repeated exposure to conditions, which results in bodily injury or property damage neither expected nor intended from the standpoint of the insured." Read the court decision
Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Tred R. Eyerly, Insurance Law Hawaii
Mr. Eyerly may be contacted at te@hawaiilawyer.com

The “Program Accessibility” Exception for Public Entities Under the ADA

September 10, 2014 — Garret Murai – California Construction Law Blog
Public owners, as well as private owners and tenants of commercial and retail properties, are at risk of lawsuits brought under the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (“ADA”) and related state law alleging that their facilities are not accessible by those with disabilities. A common misperception among private owners and tenants is that facilities constructed before the ADA went into effect in 1992 are exempt or “grandfathered” from the ADA’s requirements. Not so. At least generally. If, however, you are a public entity, there is such an exception. Lucky you. Under the ADA, public facilities constructed prior to January 26, 1992 need not be “accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities” so long as a public entity’s “service[s], program[s] and activit[ies], when viewed in [their] entirety, [are] readily accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities.” Known as “program accessibility,” the exception has left many public entities scratching their heads as to what they can and must do. Read the court decision
Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Garret Murai, Kronick Moskovitz Tiedemann & Girard
Mr. Murai may be contacted at gmurai@kmtg.com

Hawaii Appellate Court Finds Agent May Be Liable for Failing to Submit Claim

November 01, 2022 — Tred R. Eyerly - Insurance Law Hawaii
After the agent informed the insured there was no coverage and submitting a claim would be a useless effort, the Hawaii Intermediate Court of Appeal reversed the trial court's dismissal of the insured's suit against the agent. Pflueger, Inc. v. AIG Holdings, Inc., 2022 Haw. App. LEXIS 279 (Haw. Ct. App. Sept. 2, 2022). In May 2008, Pflueger notified its agent, Noguchi & Associates, Inc., that it had received federal grand jury subpoenas. Noguchi informed Pflueger that the subpoenas did not qualify as a "claim" under two policies issued by National Union. Consequently, Noguchi did not forward a claim or the subpoenas to National Union and did not seek clarification as to whether the grand jury subpoenas were covered under the policies. Pflueger relied upon Noguchi's representations and took no further action until its attorney submitted a demand letter tendering Pflueger's defense to Nation Union nine months later, in February 2009. Read the court decision
Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Tred R. Eyerly, Damon Key Leong Kupchak Hastert
Mr. Eyerly may be contacted at te@hawaiilawyer.com

COLUMBUS OHIO BUILDING EXPERT DIRECTORY AND CAPABILITIES