Seattle Washington Building Expert Directory

Florida’s Citizens Property Insurance May Be Immune From Bad Faith, But Is Not Immune From Consequential Damages

July 15, 2019 — Michael S. Levine, Andrea DeField & Daniel Hentschel - Hunton Insurance Recovery Blog
A coverage dispute arising as a result of property damage from Hurricane Frances, which occurred in 2004, will continue following a Florida appellate court decision in an action brought against Citizens Property Insurance Corp. The insureds, Manor House, LLC, Ocean View, LLC, and Merrit, LLC, presented a claim to Citizens for damage sustained at nine apartment buildings as a result of Hurricane Florence. After payments for a portion of the property damage were sustained, Citizens continued to dispute the full amount due. Meanwhile, the insureds suffered lost rental income because of the delay. Ultimately, the insureds filed suit against Citizens alleging, among other things, breach of contract and fraud, and sought to recover extra-contractual damages for loss of rental income due to the delay in adjusting and repairing the damaged property. The trial court granted Citizens’ motion for partial summary judgment on several issues, including Citizens’ motion for partial summary judgment regarding appraiser and umpire fees; motion for partial summary judgment to prevent the insureds from pursuing a claim for extra-contractual, consequential damages; and motion for judgment on the pleadings on the insured’s claim for fraud. Reprinted courtesy of Hunton Andrews Kurth attorneys Michael S. Levine, Andrea DeField and Daniel Hentschel Mr. Levine may be contacted at mlevine@HuntonAK.com Ms. DeField may be contacted at adefield@HuntonAK.com Mr. Hentschel may be contacted at dhentschel@HuntonAK.com Read the court decision
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Mortgage Battle Flares as U.K. Homebuying Loses Allure

January 28, 2015 — Neil Callanan and Richard Partington – Bloomberg
U.K. banks, which spent six years repairing their balance sheets after the 2008 property crash, want to advance more credit to homebuyers. Borrowers aren’t as enthusiastic. Cheap funding costs and low default rates have made homebuyers attractive to lenders in recent years, boosting returns for companies such as Nationwide Building Society and Lloyds Banking Group Plc. (LLOY) Now, with demand for property cooling, they’re having to fight harder for business. Interest rates on the most popular mortgages fell to record lows in December, according to the Bank of England. Mr. Callanan may be contacted at ncallanan@bloomberg.net; Mr. Partington may be contacted at rpartington@bloomberg.net Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Neil Callanan and Richard Partington, Bloomberg

Final Thoughts on New Pay If Paid Legislation in VA

August 15, 2022 — Christopher G. Hill - Construction Law Musings
This past General Assembly session, and after a governor’s amendment and with the convening of a study group, a new statute banning so-called “pay-if-paid” clauses from enforcement was passed. Some of the key features of the legislation are as follows: It does not take effect until January 1, 2023, and, For those construction contracts in which there is at least one general contractor and one subcontractor:

It requires payment within 60 days of receipt of an invoice following the satisfactory performance of the work or within 7 days of receipt of payment by the Owner
It allows for retainage
It allows the higher-tier contractor to withhold money for improper performance

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Reprinted courtesy of The Law Office of Christopher G. Hill
Mr. Hill may be contacted at chrisghill@constructionlawva.com

These Are the 13 Cities Where Millennials Can't Afford a Home

June 10, 2015 — Victoria Stilwell and Wei Lu – Bloomberg
There's no place like home — except when you can't afford one. Millennials have been priced out of some of the biggest U.S. cities, with residential real estate prices rising even as wage growth remains elusive. Bloomberg used data from the U.S. Census Bureau, Zillow Group Inc. and Bankrate.com to quantify how much more money millennials would need to earn each year to afford a home in the largest U.S. cities. The good news is that out of 50 metropolitan areas, 37 are actually affordable for the typical 18-34 year-old (scroll down to the end of the story to see the full results). The bad news is that the areas that often most appeal to young adults are also the ones where homeownership is the most out of reach. Reprinted courtesy of Victoria Stilwell, Bloomberg and Wei Lu, Bloomberg Read the court decision
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Predicting the Future of Texas’s Grid Is a Texas-Sized Challenge

June 27, 2022 — Nathaniel Bullard - Bloomberg
A little more than a year after a paralyzing winter freeze, the Texas power market just experienced the stress of extreme heat. Last week, power prices in Houston briefly jumped above $5,000 per megawatt-hour as high temperatures coincided with a number of generators being offline for maintenance. Yet a few days earlier, power prices in west Texas had been negative $883 dollars per megawatt-hour, because at the time wind generation was abundant and demand was low. “Dynamic” is one way to describe the price swings within the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (Ercot), the grid that provides the majority of the state’s power. “Jarring” or “terrifying” might be other words for it, particularly for those buying power in the spot market. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Nathaniel Bullard, Bloomberg

Are Construction Defect Claims Covered Under CGL Policies?

January 27, 2014 — Beverley BevenFlorez-CDJ STAFF
Courts have ruled differently as to whether a construction defect is or is not an “occurrence,” according to the publication Business Insurance. Four states—Colorado, Arkansas, Hawaii and South Carolina—have sought to remove ambiguity by passing statutes that define construction defect claims as occurrences. Colorado, the first state to create such a statue, passed H. B. 10-1394 in May 2010. The state legislature passed the statute “because of the complex and lengthy endorsements and exclusions facing construction professionals, according to the bill” reported Business Insurance. The article stated that “incongruous court decisions over whether construction defect claims are covered under CGL policies continue to drive uncertainty in coverage and increase litigation costs.” Read the court decision
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Decades of WCC Seminar at the Disneyland Resort

May 03, 2018 — Beverley BevenFlorez-CDJ STAFF
One of the many perks of attending the West Coast Casualty Construction Defect Seminar each year is its location at the Disneyland Hotel. What better excuse to take an afternoon or day or two to visit the happiest place on Earth? Prior to 2001, attendees only had the Disneyland Park to explore. But the beginning of 2001 brought the addition of the California Adventure Theme Park and Downtown Disney. Now when you want a break you can take a stroll through Downtown Disney and shop, eat, or watch some street performers. While California Adventure still has plenty for children to do, it also caters to the twenty-one-and-over-but-still-child-at heart with wine tasting and craft beers available at the park. Disneyland remains a fixture for nostalgia with the Sleeping Beauty Castle, but has updated itself with its addition of Star Wars and Marvel attractions. West Coast Casualty has special Disneyland ticket rates for attendees. Please see their invitation for more details. If you’re interested in one of Disneyland Resort’s sit-down restaurants, a reservation is highly desirable. You may make your reservation online or call Disney Dining at (714) 781-DINE. Staying at the Disneyland Resort? Disney provides their hotel guests with preferred access reservations (call Disney Dining for more information). If you’re looking for a fine dining experience, you’ll enjoy Carthay Circle Restaurant at California Adventure, Catal Restaurant at Downtown Disney, Napa Rose at the Grand Californian Hotel, or Steakhouse 55 at the Disneyland Hotel. If you’re a sports fan, check out ESPN Zone in Downtown Disney. For a one-of-a-kind Disney experience, have lunch or dinner at the Blue Bayou at Disneyland, where the dining room is located within the Pirates of the Caribbean ride. You may also want to check Disneyland Resort’s Entertainment schedule. For a live musical show (included in the cost of admission to California Adventure Park), check out Frozen – Live at the Hyperion. For an illuminating experience, you’ll want to stay for the Paint the Night Parade at the California Adventure Park, which features one million brilliant lights and many of your favorite Disney characters. If you’re a Pixar lover, you won’t want to miss Disneyland Park’s Together Forever – A Pixar Nighttime Spectacular. It’s a fireworks display like only Disney can create, including dazzling projections, pyrotechnics and music from the movies. If you wish to skip the crowds and just relax, then the Madara Spa at Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel may be your choice. The Madara Spa theme is “the mystery of the East meeting the science of the West with boundaries ceasing to exist.” Read the court decision
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Tax Increase Pumps $52 Billion Into California Construction

April 20, 2017 — JT Long - Engineering News-Record
The first wave of new road projects could go out at the beginning of 2018 now that the California legislature has approved $52.4 billion over 10 years from a new 12-cent-per-gallon gasoline tax. SB-1 was approved late in the evening on April 6; by April 7, the California Dept. of Transportation was already working on a list of projects that could start construction by summer of 2018. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of JT Long, ENR
ENR may be contacted at ENR.com@bnpmedia.com

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