Fairfield Connecticut Building Expert Directory

No Coverage for Additional Insured

December 17, 2015 — Tred R. Eyerly – Insurance Law Hawaii
Two insurers disputed who was responsible for coverage the additional insured contractor. Endurance Am. Spec. Ins. Co. v. Century Sur. Co., 2015 U.S. App. LEXIS 19194 (2nd Cir. Nov. 4, 2015). The district court granted summary judgment to Endurance, finding there was coverage for the additional insured general contractor after being sued by an employee of a subcontractor. Century's policy included an Action Over Exclusion clause, which excluded insurance coverage for injury to certain employees as follows: Exclusions: . . . e. Employer's Liability "Bodily injury" to: (1) an "employee" of the named insured arising out of and in the course of:

(a) Employment by the named insured; or
(b) Performing duties related to the conduct of the named insured's business.

The named insured was Pinnacle Construction & Renovation Corp. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Tred R. Eyerly, Insurance Law Hawaii
Mr. Eyerly may be contacted at te@hawaiilawyer.com

Licensing Reciprocity Comes to Virginia

May 15, 2023 — Christopher G. Hill - Construction Law Musings
Remember my admonishment to get your Virginia contractor’s license? Well, that will get easier for experienced construction professionals that hold a license from a state or territory outside of Virginia beginning on July 1, 2023. In this past session of the General Assembly, the Youngkin administration pushed and the legislature passed a universal licensure statute that (with some exceptions for professional services as defined in Va. Code 2.2-4301) will allow those (including contractors) who are licensed in other states to use that license to obtain a Virginia license. The new legislation will require DPOR to recognize another state’s license where the contractor meets the following requirements:

The individual holds a current and valid professional or occupational license or government certification in another state in a profession or occupation with a similar scope of practice, as determined by the board in the Commonwealth

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

Roots of Las Vegas Construction Defect Scam Reach Back a Decade

August 05, 2013 — CDJ STAFF
Recent court documents in the Las Vegas HOA scandal reveal that the late Nancy Quon, thought to be a mastermind in the scam was involved with a similar case before 2001. The Las Vegas Review-Journal reports that the Nevada attorney general’s office launched an investigation of the Starfire condominium complex. Claims were made that an architect and a construction company attempted to fill the Starfire board with straw buyers. Quon represented a resident to filed a claim over defective windows. Chris Rasmussen, the attorney for Edith Gillespie, Leon Benzer’s half sister, has noted that his client was not charged in the Starfire case, but the Review-Journal notes that no one was, as the insurance company settled quickly, which ended the chances for a criminal investigation. The Starfire case is described as “a $6 million lawsuit based on fraudulent construction defect claims.” Quon, Benzer, and their co-conspirators are alleged to have modeled their subsequent actions after Starfire. Read the court decision
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New York Bridge to Be Largest Infrastructure Project in North America

October 22, 2013 — CDJ STAFF
New York’s Tappan Zee Bridge is going to be replaced by the New NY Bridge, but it might be a while in coming. Work has begun, but the project is expected to last most of the next five years. Howard P. Milstein, chairman of the Thruway Authority notes that “the New NY Bridge is the largest transportation infrastructure project in North America and one of the largest construction contracts in New York State history.” The current bridge was designed for 100,000 vehicles daily, or about 38,000 fewer than cross the bridge each day. Maintenance costs have been hundreds of millions of dollars in the last few years. The cost of the new bridge is expected to be less than $4 billion. The initial estimate was that it would cost more than $5 billion to build the new bridge. Read the court decision
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Construction Mezzanine Financing

March 29, 2017 — Tim Davis & Steven Coury - White and Williams LLP
Construction mezzanine lending is on the rise and more development deals are getting done with a capital stack that includes mezzanine debt in addition to the traditional components of sponsor equity and senior mortgage debt. Below are important issues and concepts to bear in mind when structuring the financing of a construction project that includes a mezzanine debt component. Funding Sequence Funding Sequence When will the proceeds of the mezzanine loan be advanced? In some instances, the mezzanine loan proceeds will be advanced only after all of the borrower’s equity has been contributed to the construction of the project. In other instances, the borrower’s equity and the mezzanine loan proceeds go in either pari passu or simultaneously at another ratio. If the equity is not entirely contributed in advance, the mezzanine lender may require that the uncontributed equity be held by the mezzanine lender or held in a pledged account. The mezzanine lender may also further mitigate the risk of non-funding of the equity by requiring an equity funding guaranty (as discussed below). Additionally, when will the mezzanine loan proceeds be advanced in relation to the senior mortgage loan proceeds? Will the entire mezzanine loan be advanced prior to any senior mortgage loan advance or will they be advanced pari passu? Depending on the business deal, the mezzanine loan agreement will need to reflect how and when the equity, the mezzanine debt, and the mortgage debt will be advanced. Reprinted courtesy of Tim Davis, White and Williams LLP and Steven Coury, White and Williams LLP Mr. Davis may be contacted at davist@whiteandwilliams.com Mr. Coury may be contacted at courys@whiteandwilliams.com Read the court decision
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Firm Pays $8.4M to Settle Hurricane Restoration Contract Case

December 13, 2022 — James Leggate - Engineering News-Record
An electricity distribution infrastructure contractor that worked for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on hurricane restoration in Puerto Rico has agreed to pay the government $8.4 million to resolve allegations that it improperly withheld pricing data. The company denies the charges, agreeing to the settlement in order to avoid lengthy litigation. Reprinted courtesy of James Leggate, Engineering News-Record Mr. Leggate may be contacted at leggatej@enr.com Read the full story... Read the court decision
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Include Materials Price Escalation Clauses in Construction Clauses

December 26, 2022 — Robert Alfert Jr. - Construction Executive
The construction sector has been in a bull market for an unprecedented period of time. With the novel impacts from the coronavirus—and all the associated side effects, such as government moratoria, shipping delays and materials availability—we are now in a market of extreme volatility in pricing, inflation and increasing capital finance rates. And yet the construction sector continues to plow forward despite uncertainty, producing critical infrastructure, and much necessary housing, among other projects. The signs are that this trend will continue at least through Q1 of 2023, and likely beyond that, especially when you factor into the equation the many billions of dollars being placed into the market through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. It is not surprising, therefore, that the number one issue in construction contracts in 2022 is how parties handle inflation and materials cost escalations in existing contracts and in the negotiations for new contracts. There is no other issue more heavily negotiated, often disputed and hotly debated in the construction sector today. Reprinted courtesy of Robert Alfert Jr., Construction Executive, a publication of Associated Builders and Contractors. All rights reserved. Read the court decision
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Mr. Alfert may be contacted at robert.alfert@nelsonmullins.com

Coverage, Bad Faith Upheld In Construction Defect Case

October 26, 2017 — Tred R. Eyerly - Insurance Law Hawaii
The California Court of Appeal affirmed the trial court's finding of coverage for faulty workmanship allegations and bad faith by the insurer. Pulte Home Corp. v. Am Safety Indem. Co., 2017 Cal. App. LEXIS 748 (Cal. Ct. App. Aug. 30, 2017). Pulte Home Corporation was the general contractor and developer of two residential projects. American Safety issued several sequential comprehensive general liability policies to three of Pulte's subcontractors which named Pulte as an additional insured. The projects were completed by 2006. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Tred R. Eyerly - Insurance Law Hawaii
Mr. Eyerly may be contacted at te@hawaiilawyer.com

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