Seattle Washington Building Expert Directory

Georgia Update: Automatic Renewals in Consumer Service Contracts

August 31, 2020 — David R. Cook - AHC Blog
Georgia HB 1039 amends O.C.G.A. § 13-12-3 to provide additional protections for consumers who enter into service contracts containing lengthy automatic renewal provisions. Pre-Existing Requirement: For service contracts with an initial term of twelve months or longer and an automatic renewal provision for more than one month, unless the consumer terminates the agreement, sellers must provide written or electronic notification of the automatic renewal provision to the consumer. The notification must be provided to the consumer between 30 and 60 days before the cancellation deadline under such renewal provision. The notice must also “clearly and conspicuously” disclose that unless the consumer cancels, the agreement will automatically renew and disclose how the consumer may obtain details about the automatic renewal provision and cancellation procedure. The process by which a consumer may obtain such information must include the seller’s contact information (e.g., specific phone number or address), reference to the contract, or any other method provided. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of David R. Cook, Autry, Hall & Cook, LLP
Mr. Cook may be contacted at cook@ahclaw.com

New Becker & Poliakoff Attorney to Expand Morristown Construction Litigation Practice

September 10, 2014 — Beverley BevenFlorez-CDJ STAFF
According to New Jersey On-Line, Matthew Meyers has joined the Becker & Poliakoff firm at its Morristown office. Meyers “specializes in commercial litigation, with an emphasis on complex construction defects and real estate disputes.” “This is an exciting move for me,” Meyers stated, as quoted by New Jersey On-Line. “I was attracted to Becker by the firm’s depth of construction litigation talent and the additional resources available for these claims. My new firm will not only enhance my practice but will elevate the level of services I provide to clients, which has always been my top priority.“ Read the court decision
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Construction Defect Leads to Death of Worker

January 28, 2013 — CDJ STAFF
The family of a Florida man has received $2.4 million in damages as a result of his death. Victor Lizarraga was killed when a steel column fell due to the anchor bolts being improperly secured. The general contractor on the project, R. L. Haines, told subcontractors that the epoxy had sufficient time to cure. An OSHA investigation determined that the epoxy was not used properly. Mr. Lizarraga worked for a subcontractor on the project. Mr. Lizarraga and his coworkers were hired to erect steel columns. The epoxy failed, sending a 1,750-pound column down onto Mr. Lizarraga. According to the lawsuit, "due to the sudden and unexpected nature of this incident Mr. Lizarraga had no ability, opportunity or time to get out of the way of the falling column." Other parties in the lawsuit settled with the family. R. L. Haines was the only defendant to go to a jury trial. Read the court decision
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CSLB Reminds California Public Works Contractors to Renew Their Public Works Registration

October 02, 2015 — Garret Murai – California Construction Law Blog
A friendly reminder from the Contractors State License Board . . . CSLB Urges Public Works Contractors to Renew Dept. of Industrial Relations Registration before October 1 to Avoid Hefty Penalty SACRAMENTO — A mandatory renewal deadline is approaching for licensees who work on public works projects. Contractors whose registration with the California Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) expired June 30, 2015, and have ongoing public works projects or plan to bid on new ones, must pay the $300 renewal fee before October 1, 2015, or face an additional $2,000 late penalty after that date. As a result of Senate Bill (SB) 854, all contractors have been required since April 1, 2015, to register with DIR to be awarded a public works contract, even if the project did not go out to bid. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Garret Murai, Wendel Rosen Black & Dean LLP
Mr. Murai may be contacted at gmurai@wendel.com

Weyerhaeuser Leaving Home Building Business

November 13, 2013 — CDJ STAFF
The Washington-based timber giant, Weyerhaeuser, has announced that has sold off its homebuilding business. The division went by the name of WRECO (Weyerhaeuser Real Estate Company) and comprised five home builders, Maracay Homes, Pardee Homes, Quadrant Homes, Trendmaker Homes, and Winchester Homes. The division was bought by TRI Pointe Homes for about $2.7 billion of which $700 million was paid in cash. Weyerhaeuser intends to focus on their core business of timber products. Read the court decision
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Proposed Changes to Federal Lease Accounting Standards

January 19, 2017 — Susan Elliott & Lori A. Lange - Peckar & Abramson, P.C.
The Federal Accounting Standards Advisory Board (FASAB) has proposed amendments to federal lease accounting standards found within Statement of Federal Financial Accounting Standard (SFFAS) 5, ‘Accounting of Liabilities of the Federal Government,’ and SFFAS 6, ‘Accounting for Property, Plant, and Equipment,’ promulgated by FASAB. The proposals would require entities leasing property to the federal government, such as private landlords, to recognize a lease receivable and deferred revenue at the beginning of the lease term (except on intragovernmental or short-term leases). The proposals are slated to take eff ect in reporting periods following September 30, 2018. PUBLIC COMMENTS ARE DUE JANUARY 6, 2017. The federal government is one of the largest tenants in the country. The General Services Administration (GSA) alone leases space to house over 600,000 government workers. GSA has over 8,000 leases throughout the U.S. Reprinted courtesy of Susan Elliott, Peckar & Abramson, P.C. and Lori A. Lange, Peckar & Abramson, P.C. Ms. Elliott may be contacted at selliott@pecklaw.com Ms. Lange may be contacted at llange@pecklaw.com Read the court decision
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Federal Magistrate Judge Recommends Rescission of Policies

February 12, 2024 — Craig Rokuson - Traub Lieberman
In the recent case of Union Mut. Fire Ins. Co. v. 142 Driggs LLC, 2023 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 220393, Magistrate Judge Lois Bloom of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York recommended granting the insurer's default judgment and holding that of three policies issued to 142 Driggs LLC ("Driggs") be rescinded ab initio. Driggs had represented on its insurance applications that it did not provide parking to anyone other than itself, tenants, and its guests at the subject insured premises. However, Union Mutual learned that Driggs had been renting out three garages to non-tenants. Second, Driggs represented that the mercantile square footage was around 1,000 square feet, when in actuality, it was larger than allowed under the policies. Union Mutual provided underwriting guidelines in connection with its default motion, which state that "parking provided for anyone other than the insured, tenants and their guests," presents an "unacceptable risk." The guidelines also state that answering yes to any "preliminary application questions (which presumably included those regarding mercantile square footage and parking) is an "unacceptable risk." The court held that these guidelines supported a finding that Driggs made material misrepresentation and that Union Mutual relied on these misrepresentations in issuing the policies. The court, as such, recommended that the policies at issue be rescinded from inception. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Craig Rokuson, Traub Lieberman
Mr. Rokuson may be contacted at crokuson@tlsslaw.com

Lack of Flood Insurance for New York’s Poorest Residents

September 10, 2014 — Beverley BevenFlorez-CDJ STAFF
Property Casualty 360 reported that for residents of the flood-prone area of Queens, New York, even “the slightest downpour could mean evacuating their homes for a night or even weeks at a time.” The problem is that “[m]uch of Southeast Queens, an area that includes the neighborhoods of Jamaica, St. Albans and Hollis, and parts of the Rockaways, sits on a massive aquifer that swells with groundwater and spills over into streets and eventually into basements and homes after heavy rains.” However, according to Property Casualty 360, Southeast Queens residents “have been battling insurance agencies for over a decade.” “I would say more than 90% of the homeowners I speak to out here, they’re looking for insurance and they’re not getting it,” Councilman Donovan Richards, who represents Roseland and Far Rockaway, told Property Casualty 360. “Insurance companies obviously don’t want to take the risk.” Read the court decision
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