{"id":897041,"date":"2020-02-06T12:52:46","date_gmt":"2020-02-06T19:52:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/?p=897041"},"modified":"2020-02-06T12:52:55","modified_gmt":"2020-02-06T19:52:55","slug":"recent-decisions-clarify-statute-of-repose","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/recent-decisions-clarify-statute-of-repose\/","title":{"rendered":"Recent Decisions Clarify Statute of Repose"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Katharine E. Kohm | The Dispute Resolver<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A statute of repose bars claims against a defendant for a given period of time after completion of project. These statutes are stronger than statutes of limitation because tolling is not permitted. Clients including architects, engineers, builders, and contractors should understand their state\u2019s statute of repose to effectively manage and mitigate risk.\u00a0 Courts continue to interpret many of the most important aspects of their state\u2019s statute of repose. Some of the most litigated issues remain:
<\/p>\n\n\n\n

  1. What constitutes substantial completion sufficient to trigger the statute?<\/li>
  2. To which claims does the statute apply?<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    Multi-Phase Construction in Massachusetts<\/strong>
    Large projects often involve multiple phases. In D\u2019Allesandro v. Lennar Hingham Holdings, LLC, 2019 WL 5550629, at *3 (D. Mass. 2019), a 150-unit condominium project in Massachusetts was completed over 24 phases. Several owners brought a suit for construction deficiencies and code violations involving the common areas of their buildings. The suit was filed two and half years after completion of the project.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts agreed with plaintiff\u2019s argument that the statute did not run from the time the architect signed off on substantial completion. Instead, it held Massachusetts\u2019s six-year statute of repose was triggered only after the entire project was completed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The court determined that while plaintiff\u2019s claims for negligence and breach of implied warranty were subject to the statute, it did not apply to claims for intentional misrepresentation, negligent misrepresentation, violation of Massachusetts\u2019 unfair business practices statute, and breach of fiduciary duty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Ambiguity in Georgia<\/strong>
    A recent decision by the Georgia Court of Appeals has left the local construction industry with more questions than answers. In Southern States Chemical, Inc. v. Tampa Tank & Welding, Inc., 836 S.E.2d 617 (Ga. App. 2019),  the enforceability of long-term warranties appears to have been significantly impaired. The court applied the statute of repose against a warranty-contract claim. The court surprised many by holding Georgia\u2019s eight-year statute applied to claims arising from a contractor\u2019s forty-year warranty against defective work.
    The improvement in question was a chemical tank and the purported warranty was drafted after it began to leak. To further complicate matters, the court also determined the warranty only covered one year.
    This case may be on its way to the Georgia Supreme Court for clarification. All parties to existing warranty agreements are watching closely to determine whether their contracts remain enforceable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Building owners are concerned because the long-term warranties they bargained for suddenly appear in jeopardy. Contractors are apprehensive because they may no longer have the ability to incentivize construction of high-quality long-term improvements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Contracts Covered in Ohio<\/strong>
    The Supreme Court of Ohio confirmed the Buckeye State\u2019s 10-year statute of repose applies to both tort and contract claims. In New Riegel Local School District Board of Education vs. Buehrer Group Architecture and Engineering, Inc.,157 Ohio St.3d 164 (Ohio 2019), the court clarified any lingering questions about the scope of the law.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    In New Riegel, the Supreme Court of Ohio found the statute applies to \u201call causes of action,\u201d that seek \u201cto recover damages for bodily injury, an injury to real or personal property, or wrongful death, that arises out of a defective and unsafe condition of an improvement to real property *** against a person who performed services for the improvement to real property or a person who furnished the design, planning, supervision of construction, or construction of the improvement to real property.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Conclusion<\/strong>
    Regardless of how broadly these rulings are interpreted, clients contemplating claims involving improvements to real property should avoid unnecessary delay in bringing those claims. Although the broad contours of the statute of repose may seem consistent, essential details continue to be clarified in state courts.\n\n<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Katharine E. Kohm | The Dispute Resolver A statute of repose bars claims against a defendant for a given period of time after completion of project. These statutes are stronger than statutes of limitation because tolling is not permitted. Clients including architects, engineers, builders, and contractors should understand their state\u2019s statute of repose to effectively… Continue reading Recent Decisions Clarify Statute of Repose<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[10707],"tags":[9895,268],"class_list":["post-897041","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-statute-of-repose","tag-advise-consult","tag-statute-of-repose","entry"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"\nRecent Decisions Clarify Statute of Repose - Advise & Consult, Inc.<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Courts continue to interpret many of the most important aspects of their state\u2019s statute of repose. 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