Cambridge Massachusetts Building Expert Directory

Everybody Is Going to End Up Paying for Texas' Climate Crisis

March 29, 2021 — David R Baker & Mark Chediak - Bloomberg
Fallout from last month’s deadly deep freeze in Texas has quietly spread to people living hundreds of miles away. Minnesota utilities have warned that monthly heating bills could spike by $400, after the crisis jacked up natural gas prices across the country. Xcel Energy’s Colorado customers could face a $7.50 per month surcharge for the next two years. This is a subtle demonstration of the way Americans already share the collective financial burden of climate change, even if we don’t realize it. The national bill for global warming is here, and it’s rising. Perhaps it’s easier to see this dynamic playing out beyond February’s Texas cold snap. That disaster left dozens dead, stranded millions in dark homes, and sent a shockwave of higher gas prices across the nation. But since there remains scientific uncertainty over the role of global warming, let’s examine two other calamities for which the climate link is clearer: wildfires and tropical storms. Read the court decision
Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of David R Baker & Mark Chediak, Bloomberg

Presidential Executive Order 14008: The Climate Crisis Order

August 16, 2021 — Anthony B. Cavender - Gravel2Gavel
Presidential Executive Order 14008, “Tackling the Climate Crisis,” a long and unusually detailed Executive Order published in the Federal Register on February 1, 2021 (see 86 FR 7619), has generated considerable discussion and commentary. Below, I briefly outline its provisions. This EO describes the “climate crisis” in existential terms:

“There is little time left to avoid setting the world on a dangerous, potentially catastrophic climate trajectory.” Confronting and combating climate change will be an important component of American foreign policy and national security, and domestically, the federal government’s resources will be mobilized to deploy a “govern-wide approach to the climate crisis.”

Read the court decision
Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Anthony B. Cavender, Pillsbury
Mr. Cavender may be contacted at anthony.cavender@pillsburylaw.com

Defects, Delays and Change Orders

November 01, 2021 — Jacob A. Epstein - Construction Executive
As every construction professional is aware, unexpected events and problems are guaranteed on every large project. Defects, delays and change orders are sure to arise, and depending on how they are dealt with and addressed at the time, they can either have minimal effects on the overall project or they can have drastic, long-term and often costly effects, including but not limited to thousands of dollars in legal fees, increases in insurance premiums and/or years of litigation down the road. There are many reasons why so many large construction projects end up in some type of litigation. Delay claims, construction contract disputes and construction defect lawsuits are so prevalent in certain parts of the country that certain judges designate specific time blocks in their courtrooms for construction cases only—just to deal with the large portions of their case dockets dealing with construction issues at the same time. Reprinted courtesy of Jacob A. Epstein, Construction Executive, a publication of Associated Builders and Contractors. All rights reserved. Read the court decision
Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of
Mr. Epstein may be contacted at jepstein@haber.law

ASCE Statement on The Partial Building Collapse in Surfside, Florida

June 28, 2021 — Tom Smith - American Society of Civil Engineers
The following is a statement by Tom Smith, Executive Director, American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE): WASHINGTON, DC. – We are saddened by the tragic news coming out of Surfside, Florida, regarding the fatal partial building collapse of a condominium early Thursday morning. Safety is the top priority of every civil engineer, and protecting public health and safety is core to our mission at ASCE. We share our deepest condolences to all of those affected by this tragedy. Collapses like these are fortunately highly unusual and extremely rare. However, it is imperative to identify the root cause of failures when they do occur, and to ensure that proactive steps are taken to prevent future incidents. ASCE fully supports the need for continued engineering assessments to pinpoint the cause of the collapse, and we stand ready to support official investigations with technical expertise and advice available through our 150,000 civil engineer members worldwide. While rescue and recovery operations are underway, it is important that we support our first responders who are conducting essential rescue efforts and are operating as quickly as possible. We will also continue to keep those who have been injured and those who have not yet been accounted for in our hearts and thoughts, and we share our heartfelt sympathies to all of those affected. ABOUT THE AMERICAN SOCIETY OF CIVIL ENGINEERS Founded in 1852, the American Society of Civil Engineers represents more than 150,000 civil engineers worldwide and is America's oldest national engineering society. ASCE works to raise awareness of the need to maintain and modernize the nation's infrastructure using sustainable and resilient practices, advocates for increasing and optimizing investment in infrastructure, and improve engineering knowledge and competency. For more information, visit www.asce.org or www.infrastructurereportcard.org and follow us on Twitter, @ASCETweets and @ASCEGovRel. Read the court decision
Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of

Florida Issues Emergency Fraud Prevention Rule to Protect Policyholders in Wake of Catastrophic Storms

November 05, 2024 — Geoffrey B. Fehling & Olivia G. Bushman - Hunton Insurance Recovery Blog
Last week, just before Hurricane Milton made landfall, Florida state officials issued an emergency decree to all licensed insurance adjusters in the state to protect homeowners against “unfair and deceptive acts” and “post-storm fraud” by insurance carriers. According to The Washington Post, the Florida Department of Financial Services is requiring that all claim adjusters provide an explanation for each change they make to a consumer’s loss estimate, document those changes, and retain all versions of the estimate and identify who made those revisions. When processing claims, adjusters must also use an electronic estimating system that provides an itemized report of all damage, as well as labor, materials, equipment and supplies. Those costs should be consistent with what a contractor or a repair company in that particular area would charge. “Property damage from Hurricane Milton will be catastrophic and may result in billions of dollars in property losses,” the emergency rule states. “Fair and transparent loss estimates and claims adjustments will be crucial to ensure Floridians are properly and fairly compensated under the terms of their property insurance contracts, while also ensuring ongoing insurer solvency after potentially momentous financial losses.” Reprinted courtesy of Geoffrey B. Fehling, Hunton Andrews Kurth and Olivia G. Bushman, Hunton Andrews Kurth Mr. Fehling may be contacted at gfehling@HuntonAK.com Ms. Bushman may be contacted at obushman@HuntonAK.com Read the court decision
Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of

Pine Island Bridge in Place as Florida Pushes Barrier Island Access in Ian's Wake

October 10, 2022 — Derek Lacey - Engineering News-Record
A temporary bridge is in place for Pine Island, Fla., after state officials mobilized crews to restore mainland access to barrier islands cut off when Hurricane Ian washed away roads and bridges last month. President Joe Biden (D) joined Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) on Oct. 5 in touring the hardest-hit parts of the state, with the governor announcing the five-day emergency Pine Island project and plans to finish repair of the causeway to Sanibel Island by the end of October. Reprinted courtesy of Derek Lacey, Engineering News-Record Mr. Lacey may be contacted at laceyd@enr.com Read the full story... Read the court decision
Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of

Who is a “Contractor” as Used in “Unlicensed Contractor”?

June 08, 2020 — Taylor Orgeron - Autry, Hall & Cook, LLP
A recent Georgia Court of Appeals case established a rule concerning the effect of an unlicensed contractor failing to disclose that he is unlicensed. In Fleetwood v. Lucas,[1] the contractor was hired by the homeowners to perform renovations on two homes. One of the projects went over budget, and the homeowners failed to pay the remaining balances on both projects. Following their failure to pay, the contractor sued the homeowners for breach of contract, and the jury delivered a verdict in his favor. The homeowners appealed on the grounds that the contractor was barred from bringing suit because the contractor did not have a license to perform the work. Generally, if a contractor does not have a residential or general contractor’s license but performs work when a license is required, the contract is unenforceable. O.C.G.A. § 43-41-17(b). However, under O.C.G.A. § 43-41-17(g), a contractor may perform repair work without a license if the contractor discloses that he does not have a license, and the work does not affect the structural integrity of the project. In this case, the contractor failed to disclose that he did not have a license. Read the court decision
Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Taylor Orgeron, Autry, Hall & Cook, LLP
Mr. Orgeron may be contacted at orgeron@ahclaw.com

Top 10 Hurricane Preparedness Practices for Construction Sites

September 25, 2018 — Andrew Gilbert - Construction Executive
Last year, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) recorded that the North Atlantic saw the third highest number of major hurricanes to date. North America alone saw three tropical storms and four hurricanes make landfall, the most since 2005. As the 2018 hurricane season takes shape (running from June 1 to Nov. 30), it’s imperative to begin construction site hurricane planning efforts early and to be as prepared as possible prior to any storm. Preparing for a storm can help ensure the safety of not only project and onsite teams, but also of the surrounding communities. 1. DEVELOP AND REVIEW A HURRICANE PREPAREDNESS AND SAFETY PLAN Prior to hurricane season, make sure the project contractor has provided the team with a hurricane preparedness and safety plan. Review this plan with the entire team and the owner. This document outlines the exact timeline and steps the contractor will take to safely secure the project site in the event of a storm. The integrated process is especially important when dealing with renovation projects, exterior upgrades or projects that connect new construction to existing facilities. Reprinted courtesy of Andrew Gilbert, Construction Executive, a publication of Associated Builders and Contractors. All rights reserved. Read the court decision
Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of
Mr. Gilbert may be contacted at andrew.gilbert@cbre.com

CAMBRIDGE MASSACHUSETTS BUILDING EXPERT DIRECTORY AND CAPABILITIES