li·ti·gious
adjective
- of or pertaining to litigation.
- excessively or readily inclined to litigate: a litigious person.
- inclined to dispute or disagree; argumentative
Related forms
li·ti·gious·ness noun
The U.S., to many, is the poster child for litigiousness. Think woman sues fast food restaurant for serving hot coffee, think man sues beer company when beautiful women did not appear as in commercials, think man sues magicians for defying the laws of physics.
But not when it comes to construction disputes.
In a report issued this past month, EC Harris, an Arcadis company, issued its third annual report on global construction disputes – Global Construction Disputes: A Longer Resolution. The report found that construction disputes worldwide are taking longer to resolve despite being over less money.
The report further found that in 2012, construction disputes in the U.S. took the least time to resolve only behind Europe, at 11.9 months versus six months. However, while we may kiss and make up more easily than our global neighbors, we also tend to quarrel over comparatively smaller amounts, $9 million on average compared to the Middle East’s $65 million.
