Quynh-Anh Kibler and Joe Watson | Holland & Knight Highlights If you’ve worked on a Tennessee construction project, you know about retainage: It’s the percentage of earned contract payments an owner holds back as work progresses. What you may not know is that the law governing when those funds must be released has become unsettled.… Continue reading Substantial Confusion Upon Substantial Completion
Category: Construction Contracts
California’s New Private Works Claims Process: Why Owners and Contractors Must Update Their Agreements
John Greenhall | Cohen Seglias Pallas Greenhall & Furman California has rewritten the rules for resolving payment and change-order disputes on private construction projects. Senate Bill 440, the Private Works Change Order Fair Payment Act, was enacted as Chapter 583 of the 2025 Statutes and is codified at California Civil Code section 8850 (Cal. Civ.… Continue reading California’s New Private Works Claims Process: Why Owners and Contractors Must Update Their Agreements
Not So Cleaver: Why Merely Referencing a Proposal May Not Incorporate Its Terms
W. Hunter Webb and John Mark Goodman | BuildSmart In construction contracts, proposals, drawings, studies, etc. are often incorporated by reference. A Nebraska federal court recently addressed what language is sufficient to accomplish such incorporation. In Cleaver Brooks Co. v. B&K Mechanical Contractors, LLC, No. 4:23-CV-3243, 2026 WL 2254434 (D. Neb. Aug. 5, 2026), the court… Continue reading Not So Cleaver: Why Merely Referencing a Proposal May Not Incorporate Its Terms
Could California’s New Construction Claims Law Override Your Contract?
Kirsten Worley, Adam Witt, Jack Branscorme and Ben Codog | Ahead of Schedule Many owners and contractors assume that their construction contract controls how claims and disputes will be handled. After all, substantial time is often spent negotiating notice provisions, mediation requirements, dispute resolution procedures, and payment terms. Beginning with many private construction contracts entered… Continue reading Could California’s New Construction Claims Law Override Your Contract?
Changes to the Way Modifications Are Made to Ohio Public Construction Contracts Go Into Effect September 17, 2026
Thomas Rosenberg | Roetzel & Andress In June 2026, the Ohio Legislature passed Senate Bill 262, the “Show Your Work Act” for construction contracts. The legislation mandates changes to how modifications to Ohio public construction contracts are made, effective September 17, 2026, and the bill was signed into law by Governor Mike DeWine on June… Continue reading Changes to the Way Modifications Are Made to Ohio Public Construction Contracts Go Into Effect September 17, 2026