Fairfield Connecticut Building Expert Directory

Buyer Beware: Insurance Agents May Have No Duty to Sell Construction Contractors an Insurance Policy Covering Likely Claims

May 20, 2024 — David McLain - Higgins, Hopkins, McLain & Roswell, LLC
Construction contractors in the market for insurance coverage have few legal protections if their insurance agent fails to provide insurance that covers likely claims against the contractor. As construction defect lawsuits continue to be a frequent occurrence throughout Colorado, we have seen an increase in the number and complexity of coverage endorsements and exclusions in insurance policies. Some of these exclusions result in insurance policies that are essentially useless to the contractor who purchased them. For example, we have seen dirt work contractors with earth movement exclusions or an earth movement sublimit that turns their $2 million policy into a $100,000 policy. We have seen contractors who primarily build tract homes in subdivisions with tract home exclusions. We have seen general contractors whose policies state that every subcontractor must name the contractor as an additional insured or else the general contactor’s policy converts from a seven-figure policy to a five-figure policy with eroding limits (meaning that the attorney’s fees, expert fees, and litigation costs reduce the coverage limits). The list goes on and leads to an unfortunately high number of contractors who pay significant sums for their insurance policies, finding themselves uninsured or underinsured. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of David McLain, Higgins, Hopkins, McLain & Roswell, LLC
Mr. McLain may be contacted at mclain@hhmrlaw.com

Sixth Circuit Finds No Coverage for Faulty Workmanship Under Kentucky Law

December 30, 2013 — Tred Eyerly — Insurance Law Hawaii
Following Kentucky law, the Sixth Circuit determined there was no coverage for a construction defect claim. Liberty Mut. Fire Ins. Co. v. Kay & Kay Contracting, LLC, 2013 U.S. App. LEXIS 23587 (6th Cir. Nov. 19, 2013). Walmart hired a contractor to build a new store. The contractor hired Kay and Kay to perform site preparation work and construct the building pad for the new store. After Kay and Kay completed the building pad and the store was erected, cracks were noticed in the building's walls. Walmart contended there was settling in the some of the fill areas. Kay and Kay denied liability, but demanded coverage under its CGL policy with Liberty Mutual. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Tred Eyerly
Tred Eyerly can be contacted at te@hawaiilawyer.com

David M. McLain, Esq. to Speak at the 2014 CLM Claims College

August 13, 2014 — David M. McLain, Esq. – Colorado Construction Litigation
David McLain will be a speaker at the School of Construction. The Claims College will be held from September 7-10 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Mr. McLain is a founding member of Higgins, Hopkins,McLain & Roswell, LLC, a firm which specializes in construction law and construction litigation throughout Colorado. Mr. McLain received his undergraduate degree from Colorado State University, graduating cum laude, and his law degree from the University of Denver, College of Law. Mr. McLain completed the Claims and Litigation Management Alliance Litigation Management Institute, earning the designation from that organization as a Certified Litigation Management Professional. He has a general civil litigation practice with an emphasis on the defense of complex construction lawsuits on behalf of developers and general contractors. As a result of the experience gained by defending some of Colorado’s largest residential construction defect lawsuits, developers, general contractors, and subcontractors seek out Mr. McLain to consult on risk avoidance and risk management strategies. Currently among his clients are several of the state’s largest home builders, regional and custom builders, and numerous insurance carriers. Mr. McLain is an AV® Preeminent™ Peer Review Rated attorney by Martindale-Hubbell and is a regular speaker at local, regional, and national seminars regarding construction defect litigation in Colorado. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of David M. McLain, Higgins, Hopkins, McLain & Roswell, LLC
Mr. McLain may be contacted at mclain@hhmrlaw.com

Warren Renews Criticism of Private Equity’s Role in Housing

February 01, 2022 — Akayla Gardner - Bloomberg
Senator Elizabeth Warren is doubling down on her criticism of private equity’s involvement in the U.S. housing market as the nation grapples with an affordable-housing shortage. In letters sent Thursday, the Massachusetts Democrat asked housing firms Progress Residential LLC, Invitation Homes Inc. and American Homes 4 Rent about recent rent hikes, plans to acquire more properties and the number of evictions in recent years. Warren and other Democrats have scrutinized Wall Street’s role in the housing market since the 2008 financial crisis. During the pandemic, lawmakers have been on high alert for violations of eviction moratoriums and unfair treatment as Americans struggled financially to stay on their feet. Warren also expressed concern about automated homebuying practices, which allow companies to buy up properties using algorithms. Bloomberg reported that last year Zillow offloaded thousands of homes to institutional investors. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Akayla Gardner, Bloomberg

Signs of a Slowdown in Luxury Condos

January 28, 2015 — Prashant Gopal, Oshrat Carmiel and John Gittelsohn – Bloomberg
Manhattan real estate agent Lisa Gustin listed a four-bedroom Tribeca loft for $7.45 million in October, expecting a quick sale. Instead, she cut the price by $550,000 in January. “I thought for sure a foreign buyer would come in,” says Gustin, a broker at Brown Harris Stevens who is still marketing the 3,800-square-foot apartment. “So many new condos are coming up right now. They’ve been building them for the past few years, and now they’re really hurting the resales.” New high-priced condominiums and mansions are hitting the market in New York, Miami, and Los Angeles just as international buyers, who helped fuel luxury demand in the three cities, are seeing their purchasing power wane with the strengthening dollar. Signs of a pullback may already be showing in Manhattan, where luxury-home sales have slowed amid a boom in the construction of towers aimed at U.S. millionaires and foreign investors. Sales of homes costing more than $2 million in the New York area rose 10 percent last year, compared with a 27 percent jump in 2013, according to CoreLogic DataQuick. Reprinted courtesy of Bloomberg reporters Prashant Gopal, Oshrat Carmiel and John Gittelsohn Mr. Gittlesohn may be contacted at johngitt@bloomberg.net; Ms. Carmiel may be contacted at ocarmiel1@bloomberg.net; Mr. Gopal may be contacted at pgopal2@bloomberg.net Read the court decision
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Florida Duty to Defend a Chapter 558 Right to Repair Notice

July 30, 2015 — Scott Patterson – CD Coverage
In Altman Contractors, Inc. v. Crum & Forster Specialty Insurance Co., 2015 WL 3539755 (S.D. Fla. 2015), Altman was the general contractor for a residential condominium project. The condominium association served Altman with Chapter 558 notices. A Chapter 558 notice is a statutory prerequisite to a property owner’s construction defect lawsuit and provides the contractor with an opportunity to respond and avoid litigation. Altman demanded that its CGL insurer, Crum & Forster, provide a defense to the Chapter 558 notices by hiring counsel to represent Altman’s interests. While not disputing that the claimed defects may be covered under the policy, Crum & Forster denied any duty to defend against the notices on the basis that they did not constitute a “suit.” Altman filed suit. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Scott Patterson, CD Coverage

Governor Inslee’s Recent Vaccination Mandate Applies to Many Construction Contractors and their Workers

September 13, 2021 — Brett M. Hill - Ahlers Cressman & Sleight PLLC
This month Governor Jay Inslee enacted COVID vaccination requirements that apply to certain construction contractors and their workers in Washington state. Inslee’s vaccine proclamation becomes effective October 18, 2021 and requires construction contractors, subcontractors, and their workers to be fully vaccinated to perform work onsite on certain covered projects. The following are types of covered projects where the vaccine mandate applies:

State agencies: All contractors working at projects for Washington state agencies (including WSDOT, DES, DNR, etc.) if the work is required to be performed in person and onsite, regardless of the frequency or whether other workers are present. The vaccine mandate applies to indoor and outdoor settings and there is no exemption even if social distancing requirements can be met.
Education/Higher Education/Child Care: All contractors performing work onsite for K-12, higher education (community colleges, technical colleges, and 4-year universities), child care and other facilities where students or persons receiving services are present. New and unoccupied projects are exempt but it does apply to public and private projects.
Medical facilities: All contractors performing work at a “healthcare setting” where patients receiving care are present. “Healthcare setting” is defined as any public or private setting that is primarily used for the delivery of in-person health care services to people. “Healthcare setting” includes portions of a multi-use facility, but only the areas that are primarily used for the delivery of health care, such as a pharmacy within a grocery store. Additional information is on the state’s Q&A page.

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Reprinted courtesy of Brett M. Hill, Ahlers Cressman & Sleight PLLC
Mr. Hill may be contacted at brett.hill@acslawyers.com

Colorado’s New Construction Defect Law Takes Effect in September: What You Need to Know

September 07, 2017 — Jesse Witt - The Witt Law Firm
Colorado’s new construction defect law officially takes effect this month. Although HB 17-1279 was passed in May, the statutory text provides that it only applies “with respect to events and circumstances occurring on or after September 1, 2017.” With that date now upon us, practitioners should be mindful of the law’s new requirements. The law applies to any lawsuit wherein a homeowner association files a construction defect action on behalf of two or more of its members. “Construction defect action” is defined broadly to include any claims against construction professionals relating to deficiencies in design or construction of real property. Before an association may commence such an action, its board must follow several steps. First, the board must deliver notice of the potential construction defect action to all homeowners and the affected construction professionals at their last known addresses. This requirement does not apply to construction professionals identified after the notice has been mailed, or to construction professionals joined in a previously-approved lawsuit. The notice must include a description of the alleged construction defects with reasonable specificity, the relief sought, a good-faith estimate of the benefits and risks involved, and a list of mandatory disclosures concerning assessments, attorney fees, and the marketability of units affected by construction defects. The notice must also call a meeting of all homeowners. The notice should be sent to the construction professionals at least five days before the homeowners. Reprinted courtesy of Jesse Howard Witt, Acerbic Witt Mr. Witt may be contacted at www.witt.law Read the full story... Read the court decision
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FAIRFIELD CONNECTICUT BUILDING EXPERT DIRECTORY AND CAPABILITIES