Robert Ruggieri | Cohen Seglias Pallas Greenhall & Furman Disputes are a fact of life in the construction industry. As a practicing construction attorney for twenty years, both with a law firm and in-house at a national construction contractor, I have negotiated and helped resolve hundreds of construction disputes between owners, general contractors, subcontractors, architects… Continue reading Negotiating Construction Disputes: Lessons Learned from “Getting to Yes”
Category: Construction
The Fine Line Between Delay and Bad Faith: Insights from the Fifth Circuit.
Ashley Eldridge | Avoiding Insurance Bad Faith A prompt response is critical when disaster strikes, but as the Fifth Circuit recently ruled, delays may be excusable in certain circumstances. In First United Pentecostal Church v. Church Mut. Ins. Co., No. 23-30779, 2024 WL 4511240 (5th Cir. Oct. 17, 2024), First United Pentecostal Church sued Church Mutual… Continue reading The Fine Line Between Delay and Bad Faith: Insights from the Fifth Circuit.
Flushing Away Liability: What the Aqua Engineering Case Means for Contractors and Subcontractors
Heather Zipperer | Higgins, Hopkins, McLain & Roswell The recent Town of Mancos v. Aqua Engineering case is an insightful example of how well written contracts and timely legal action can make all the difference in resolving disputes between municipalities, general contractors, and subcontractors. The ruling favored Aqua Engineering; a subcontractor that played a role in a… Continue reading Flushing Away Liability: What the Aqua Engineering Case Means for Contractors and Subcontractors
More (and Simpler) Options Under New Oregon Retention Law
Michael Yelle | Ahlers, Cressman & Sleight Similar to the changes made by the Washington Legislature last year, the Oregon Legislature recently changed its retention law. Oregon public works agencies and large commercial project owners are now required to accept surety bonds in lieu of withholding retainage on construction projects. There is also no longer… Continue reading More (and Simpler) Options Under New Oregon Retention Law
Owners and Contractors are Liable for Injuries Caused by their Independent Contractors under the “Peculiar Risk Doctrine”
William L. Porter | Porter Law Group Many contractors and owners believe that if they hire an independent contractor to perform work and that independent contractor causes injury to others during the performance of that work, then it is the independent contractor alone who will be liable for those injuries. In most circumstances, this is… Continue reading Owners and Contractors are Liable for Injuries Caused by their Independent Contractors under the “Peculiar Risk Doctrine”