“Substantial Completion” is a critical concept in construction contracts and one as to which parties often have contrary conceptions. Finding a definition of Substantial Completion acceptable to both the owner and the...more
The North Carolina Court of Appeals recently issued a decision in Gaston County Board of Education v. Shelco, LLC, et al that has the potential to significantly impact the time limits for claims on construction projects....more
Statutes of repose establish a legislature’s determination of when defendants should be free from liability. As set forth in Nevada Revised Statute (NRS) 11.202, the statute of repose for construction improvements in Nevada...more
As we write this alert, new legislation is in its final stages of becoming law in New York State, which will address the longstanding abuse of the substantial completion schedule milestone in project closeout. Few words...more
Imagine the following. A developer consults with an architect in 2020 about a six-building condominium project. The architect promptly produces a set of plans, which are stamped by an engineer. Over the next three years, the...more
In Hensel Phelps Constr. Co. v. Superior Court, 257 Cal. Rptr. 3d 746 (Cal. Ct. App. 2020), the Court of Appeals of California, Fourth Appellate District, addressed whether a party’s contractual definition of the phrase...more
The Massachusetts Statute of Repose requires litigants to assert within six years all tort claims arising out of the design, construction, or administration of improvements to real property. The Statute begins to run upon the...more
The Court’s decision in New Riegel Local School District Board of Education, et al. v. The Buehrer Group Architecture & Engineering, Inc., et al. interprets Ohio’s Statute of Repose, which generally requires certain...more
Legal System - 1. Is your jurisdiction primarily a common law, civil law, customary law or theocratic law jurisdiction? Are the laws substantially derived from the laws of another jurisdiction and, if so, which? What...more
Many a construction dispute turns on defects. A significant subset of those turn on whether the existence of defects prevents practical completion from taking place. Originally published on the Practical Law Construction...more
S.C Code §15-3-640, provides, in pertinent part: No actions to recover damages based upon or arising out of the defective or unsafe condition of an improvement to real property may be brought more than eight years after...more
The Third District Court of Appeal recently held that completion under the mechanics lien statute requires actual completion of the work of improvement, meaning completion of the entire structure or scheme of improvement as a...more
It’s official: the October 20, 2016 deadline to petition for certiorari to the Colorado Court of Appeals on its decision in Sierra Pacific Industries, Inc. v. Bradbury has passed, so it appears that decision will stand. ...more
The recent Master’s decision in Chandos Construction Ltd v Twin Peaks Construction Ltd, 2016 ABQB 296 determined an issue under the Builders’ Lien Act (Alberta) (BLA) which, surprisingly, had never been specifically addressed...more
As the competition for construction loan projects remains at unprecedented levels in much of the country, lenders are frequently being asked to waive, modify or re-visit their standard construction loan credit enhancement...more
Substantial completion is described in AIA Document A201™-2007 as “the stage in the progress of the Work when the Work or designated portion thereof is substantially complete in accordance with the Contract Documents so that...more
How to apply Wisconsin’s construction statute of repose, Wis. Stat. § 893.89, in asbestos cases has recently been a hot topic dividing trial courts. The statute bars a broad category of claims if they are brought more than 10...more
On January 27, 2015, the Court of Appeal, Second Appellate District, affirmed, in part, a hefty trial judgment against the Rio School District for improperly withholding retention funds in the case of FTR International, Inc....more
On August 9, 2014, Governor Patrick signed SB2271 into law. This law will have important impacts on both private developers and contractors. The Act limits the amount of retainage withheld under construction contracts and...more
By statute, the time to bring a lawsuit against a contractor for hidden construction deficiencies can be as long as 10 years. That means that, say, a property owner could sue his or her architect or general contractor for...more
A quick trip down Brickell Avenue, up the Biscayne Boulevard Corridor, or along Miami Beach’s Collins Avenue will confirm the statistics from a recent report that nonresidential and residential construction contracts are up...more
While Colorado’s General Assembly passed no significant legislation affecting construction law in 2012, the Colorado Court of Appeals handed down a number of significant rulings....more