Nuclear Fusion Pushes to Reach Commercial Power Plant Stage
August 05, 2024 —
Mary B. Powers, Debra K. Rubin, Peter Reina & David Godkin - Engineering News-RecordThe quest to develop nuclear fusion—the process that energizes the sun and other stars—as an earth-based power source dates back more than a century when Albert Einstein and other scientists theorized how enormous amounts of energy could be produced when atoms fuse. That research was partly diverted for wartime weapons priorities but later targeted to develop fusion for commercial-scale energy—what sector proponents have called the “holy grail” for decades since.
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Mary B. Powers, Engineering News-Record,
Debra K. Rubin, Engineering News-Record,
Peter Reina, Engineering News-Record and
David Godkin, Engineering News-Record
Ms. Rubin may be contacted at rubind@enr.com
Mr. Reina may be contacted at reina@btinternet.com
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Commercial Development Nearly Quadruples in Jacksonville Area
December 04, 2013 —
CDJ STAFFConstruction is up in the Jacksonville area, and no sector is doing better than commercial construction. During the first ten months of 2012, there was $21.2 million of commercial construction, but during the first ten months of 2013, there was been $73.2 million of commercial construction, helped along by a $13.7 million medical complex.
In addition to the massive growth in commercial construction, residential construction is up, but by a comparatively modest 52%.
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The Expansion of Potential Liability of Construction Managers and Consultants
November 18, 2019 —
Scott D. Cessar - Construction ExecutiveOver the last decade or so, there has been far more judicial willingness to adopt legal theories that result in an increased risk of exposure to construction managers and consultants working on construction projects. This has resulted in a greater likelihood of lawsuits being filed that name construction managers and consultants as defendants and a greater likelihood of those lawsuits surviving efforts to have the lawsuits dismissed prior to trial. The consequence of more claims has led to increased costs for legal expenses, settlements and uncompensated personnel time devoted to the defense of the claims.
This expansion of potential liability may be broken into two sets:
- claims for pure economic loss not arising from property damage or personal injury by parties not in a contractual relationship with a construction manager or consultant; and
- claims for property damage or personal injury by a party not in a contractual relationship with a construction manager or consultant.
The first set concerns claims by a contractor against a construction manager or consultant that its breach of duties owed to the owner on a project and/or its provision of incomplete or inaccurate information on a project, which it knew, or should have reasonably anticipated, would be relied on by the contractor, resulted in damages to the contractor.
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Scott D. Cessar, Construction Executive, a publication of Associated Builders and Contractors. All rights reserved.
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Mr. Cessar may be contacted at
scessar@eckertseamans.com
Wreckage Removal Underway at Site of Collapsed Key Bridge in Baltimore, But Weather Slows Progress
April 15, 2024 —
Jim Parsons - Engineering News-RecordNote: The text of this article was updated 4/3/24 to reflect new information.
Weather and water conditions are hampering the piece-by-piece process of cutting and removing wreckage from the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, while officials consider potentially utilizing progressive design-build for a replacement bridge. Officials remain uncertain as to how long the meticulous effort to clear the key shipping channel will take.
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Jim Parsons, Engineering News-Record
ENR may be contacted at enr@enr.com
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Timber Prices Likely to Keep Rising
October 30, 2013 —
CDJ STAFFLumber prices are expected to keep rising, and according to Terry Shumacher, who does business acquisition for private equity firms, that’s a sign to invest in lumber stocks. Writing at Seeking Alpha, he looks at one such company, Tembec, the eleventh largest lumber producer in North America. Tembec is headquartered in Canada, but its stock trades on both the Canadian and American markets.
Mr. Schumacher points out that one of the advantages of Tembec as an investment is that its stock is currently trading at about $2.59 a share, so a $50 per million board feet increase in the cost of lumber would make a large percentage change to its earnings to price ratio. (As comparison, Mr. Schumacher offers West Fraser, which is trading at about $89.59. There, the increase in lumber prices would have a much smaller effect on the stock price.)
There’s going to be a greater demand for lumber, not only due to increased housing starts but that North American firms have started exporting lumber to China. Add to that the loss of trees in some areas due to beetle infestations. The death of standing timber has lead to some sawmills shutting down for lack of logs. All of which points to increased timber prices.
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White and Williams recognized with Multiple Honorees in the Chambers 2023 USA Guide
June 26, 2023 —
White and Williams LLPChambers has released their 2023 USA guide and ranked White and Williams as a leader among national law firms. The firm was recognized for recent achievements in Real Estate Finance and Insurance in Pennsylvania, and Construction in Maryland. “We are very pleased to have some of our most talented attorneys recognized again by Chambers”, said Andrew Susko, the Firm’s Managing Partner.
In addition, to practice area recognition, nine lawyers were recognized and ranked highly in the 2023 Chambers USA guide from Connecticut, Pennsylvania, and Maryland. In Philadelphia, Timothy E. Davis, Partner and Chair of the Business Department, and Nancy Sabol Frantz, Chair of the Real Estate and Finance practice were recognized for their achievements in Real Estate: Finance; and, Stephen Coury, Connecticut Office Managing Partner, was ranked among the top Real Estate professionals in Connecticut.
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White and Williams LLP
Morrison Bridge Allegedly Crumbling
February 05, 2015 —
Beverley BevenFlorez-CDJ STAFFThe Portland Mercury reported that the Portland, Oregon Morrison Bridge’s structure is breaking into pieces.
"The bridge is crumbling," Joel Mullin, attorney from Stoel Rives representing the county told a Multnomah County judge, according to the Portland Mercury. "The deterioration has accelerated more than anticipated."
Newly released documents seem to imply that the bridge “project was doomed well before it started, and county officials should have known it,” the Portland Mercury reported.
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How California’s Construction Industry has dealt with the New Indemnity Law
October 22, 2014 —
Mark S. Himmelstein, Esq. - Newmeyer & DillionIt has been almost two years since the California legislature enacted changes to the state’s indemnity law affecting commercial construction contracts. Although we do not yet have any court opinions analyzing the new statutes, the attorneys at
Newmeyer & Dillion now have real world experience in negotiating such indemnity provisions. It is time to evaluate how the construction community has reacted to the changes. In this article, we examine the practical applications of the new law to various construction agreements.
Enacted on January 1, 2013, the new legislation was the latest in a series of efforts by subcontractors and their insurers to eliminate “Type I” indemnity clauses. Under a Type I provision, a subcontractor has a duty to indemnify the developer or general contractor for the negligence of the developer or general contractor or other subcontractors, in addition to the negligence of the subcontractor itself. In 2006, the law was changed to preclude Type I provisions regarding “For Sale” residential construction defect claims. At that time, there was no such restriction enacted for commercial construction contracts. However, since then, commercial subcontractors have been seeking similar legislation. Their efforts culminated in the 2013 revisions regarding commercial contracts.
Commercial Subcontracts
Pursuant to the new indemnity statute — Civil Code section 2782.05 — we have revised our clients’ commercial subcontracts to:
(a) Eliminate the requirement that the subcontractor indemnify the general contractor for the general contractor’s “active negligence;” and
(b) Include the subcontractor’s options for defending claims for which they have an indemnity obligation.
Many subcontractors have responded: “Hey, wait a minute, the new legislation eliminated Type I indemnity so you (general contractor) cannot still require any indemnification for the general contractor’s negligence”. Well, that might be the rumor in subcontractor circles, but the new statute does not eliminate indemnity for the general contractor’s passive fault. In addition, the Civil Code lists 13 instances where the new indemnity restrictions do not apply.
Residential Subcontracts
The legislature did not make anyone’s job easier by drafting a different indemnity provision for commercial subcontracts than for residential subcontracts. In fact, the residential and commercial statutes are different in several critical respects. First, the restrictions on indemnity in the residential statute apply only to construction defect claims in newly constructed “For Sale” houses. The statute does not preclude Type I indemnity provisions for any other claims arising out of residential subcontracts. In contrast, the indemnity restrictions in the commercial statute apply to all claims arising out of commercial subcontracts. In addition, the commercial statute allows indemnity for the general contractor’s passive fault. Since some subcontractors on “residential” projects perform off-site “commercial” work as well, we have amended even residential subcontracts to address the subcontractors’ various indemnity obligations for different parts of their work (e.g., residential work versus commercial work).
Owner-Contractor Agreements
The January 1, 2013 new indemnity provisions apply not only to subcontracts, but also to owner-contractor agreements. Civil Code section 2782(c)(1) precludes indemnity for an owner’s active negligence. Interestingly, the exclusions contained in Civil Code section 2782.05 for subcontracts do not apply, and the statute does not provide contractors with the option of defending claims set forth in the sections concerning subcontracts. Therefore, we have revised the indemnity provisions in owner-contractor agreements to exclude indemnity for the owner’s active negligence.
Design Professional Agreements
The 2007 revisions with respect to “For Sale” residential contracts (discussed above), and the 2013 revisions for commercial contracts do not apply to design professionals. The new indemnity statute concerning commercial subcontracts specifically excludes design professionals from the “anti-indemnity” benefits provided to subcontractors. Therefore, Type I indemnity provisions are fair game and can still be included in design professional contracts.
Conclusion
In sum, Civil Code sections 2782 et seq. now contain an increasingly complex framework for indemnity rules in construction contracts. For example, there is one set of rules for “For Sale” residential construction defect claims (no indemnity for the developer’s active or passive negligence), another for any other claims arising out of residential construction (Type I indemnity is permitted), another for commercial subcontracts (no indemnity for the general contractor’s active negligence, but indemnity for the general contractor’s passive negligence unless any of the exceptions apply, in which case Type I indemnity is permitted), and yet another for commercial owner contractor agreements (no indemnity for the owner’s active negligence, but indemnity for the owner’s passive negligence with no exceptions).
California’s indemnity laws are complex, and rumors as to the impact of the new legislation have made it even more difficult to negotiate these provisions. It is imperative that indemnity clauses in construction contracts clearly delineate the obligations for the specific type or types of work contemplated by the contract. The legislature’s attempt to simplify indemnity obligations has actually made such provisions lengthier and more cumbersome. As experienced construction attorneys, our task is to draft indemnity provisions that comply with the laws, address potential claims, and are understandable.
Mr. Himmelstein is a partner in the Newport Beach office of Newmeyer & Dillion and practices in the areas of construction, real estate, business and insurance litigation. He also specializes in drafting and negotiating construction and real estate contracts. Mark can be reached at mark.himmelstein@ndlf.com.
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