In life, rejection is often hard to swallow. In construction, that rejection can sometimes amount to millions of dollars. A Massachusetts court recently held that an owner’s rejection of the contractor’s payment...more
My commute home last night took longer than usual. It was not excessive traffic, an accident, or a stalled car. Rather, the cause of my delayed commute was a turtle: one single turtle crossing the road, holding up about 30...more
In WDF, Inc. v. City of New York, No. 652478 (N.Y. Sup.) (Mar. 12, 2021), the contractor filed suit to recover damages from the City on numerous combined waste water treatment projects. The contractor claimed that the City...more
3/19/2021
/ Breach of Contract ,
Construction Contracts ,
Construction Disputes ,
Construction Litigation ,
Construction Project ,
Contract Terms ,
Damages ,
Delay Claims ,
Discovery ,
Document Productions ,
Document Retention Policies ,
Public Projects
What’s a goocher? If you saw the movie, Stand By Me, then you know exactly what I mean. And there are times when parties to a construction contract face a goocher. ...more
3/17/2021
/ Breach of Contract ,
Construction Contracts ,
Construction Disputes ,
Construction Litigation ,
Construction Project ,
Contract Disputes ,
Contract Terms ,
Payment Terms ,
Performance Standards ,
Real Estate Development ,
SD Supreme Court ,
Statutory Interpretation ,
Time Restrictions ,
Timely Project Completion ,
Unenforceable Contract Terms
Long before I was an attorney, I heard this tale that if you endorsed a check that had the words “PAID IN FULL” written on the check, then you were accepting the check as full payment of whatever was owed. But I have never...more
It happens all the time! The owner-contractor agreement contains a “no damages for delay” clause; a clause requiring that all changes be in writing before work is performed; and a clause requiring partial lien waivers and...more
9/25/2020
/ Breach of Contract ,
Construction Contracts ,
Construction Disputes ,
Construction Litigation ,
Construction Project ,
Contract Terms ,
Delay Claims ,
Failure To Pay ,
No Damage For Delay ,
Real Estate Development ,
Waivers
In Wickersham Construction and Engineering, Inc. v. The Town of Sudlersville, Maryland (Sept. 22, 2020), the United States District Court for the District of Maryland held that a construction contractor had waived certain...more
The last six months have been a whirlwind, especially for this single dad of six school children (who are no longer in school) while I work from home/office/car/jobsite/court....more
They say that hindsight is 20/20. Who is they, anyway? The old proverb means that it is easy to understand something after it has already happened. In the world of construction contracts, preservation of claims made in...more
It almost goes without saying that if you have to pursue or defend a delay claim, you are going to need some evidence (preferably by an expert) to establish or to challenge entitlement to the damages sought. And we all know...more
It kind of goes without saying, but you should probably bring your expert to a dispute if there is going to be a battle of the experts. One contractor recently learned this lesson to the tune of $65,000....more
12/9/2019
/ Appeals ,
Construction Contracts ,
Construction Disputes ,
Construction Litigation ,
Construction Project ,
Contract Terms ,
Damages ,
Delays ,
Expert Witness ,
Federal Contractors ,
Litigation Strategies ,
Renovations
In VVM Builders, LLC v. Atkins Construction Group, LLC, No. CV195021541S (Oct. 31, 2019), the Superior Court of Connecticut squarely addressed this precise issue in a case involving a change order dispute between a contractor...more
11/26/2019
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Awards ,
Change Orders ,
Construction Contracts ,
Construction Disputes ,
Construction Project ,
Contract Terms ,
Damages ,
General Contractors ,
Invoices ,
Motion to Confirm ,
Notice and Demand For Payment ,
Subcontractors
I just blogged about asking for what you want and the importance of complying with notice provisions in pursuing a construction claim. A court in Oklahoma just reminded me that not all claims require notice. Here’s what I...more
Sometimes you “do” bad things. Sometimes you “look like” you do bad things. Just look at the difference between Bad-boy Jack and my youngest daughter, Haven, who just “looks like” she’s up to no good. In the world of...more
Construction disputes often involve voluminous amounts of discovery, including documents in the hand of third parties. And if the case is subject to arbitration, it is likely that there will be a dispute about whether the...more
11/19/2019
/ Appeals ,
Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Arbitrators ,
CIGNA ,
Construction Contracts ,
Construction Disputes ,
Contract Disputes ,
Contract Terms ,
Depositions ,
Discovery ,
Discovery Disputes ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Motion to Compel ,
Non-Parties ,
Summons ,
Third-Party
A few years ago, I did a post on whether a digital signature in a construction contract was valid. Given the regularity by which parties now communicate by email, it is certainly a subject worth revisiting....more
11/19/2019
/ Claim Procedures ,
Construction Contracts ,
Construction Disputes ,
Construction Litigation ,
Construction Project ,
Contract Claims ,
Discovery ,
E-Signatures ,
Electronic Communications ,
Litigation Strategies ,
Miller Act ,
Notice Requirements
Given the amount of leftover Halloween candy in our house, you bet that I can make some deals with my kiddos: “If you do this, I will give you some candy” … or … “If you don’t stop doing this … I won’t give you any candy.”...more
11/6/2019
/ Construction Contracts ,
Construction Disputes ,
Construction Project ,
Contract Terms ,
Delay Claims ,
General Contractors ,
Non-Payment Clauses ,
Prompt Payment ,
Retainage ,
Statutory Violations ,
Subcontractors
When we think of delays on a construction project, the first inquiry is to identify the turtle—the one party holding up progress or causing the delay. Many times, the parties’ contract will dictate whether the contractor can...more
9/5/2018
/ Architects ,
Construction Contracts ,
Construction Disputes ,
Construction Industry ,
Construction Project ,
Contract Terms ,
General Contractors ,
Miami ,
Motion for Summary Judgment ,
Municipalities ,
No Damage For Delay ,
Public Projects ,
Renovations ,
Reversal ,
Waiver of Rights
Long before I was an attorney, I heard this tale that if you endorsed a check that had the words “PAID IN FULL” written on the check, then you were accepting the check as full payment of what was owed. But I had never really...more
I previously blogged about the importance of using daily reports to prove construction claims.
In addition to daily reports, the following records should be prepared and maintained in the normal course of business to...more
In C and H Electric, Inc. v. Town of Bethel, 312 Conn. 843 (2014), the Connecticut Supreme Court held that a Contractor’s claims against a Town for delay damages could not overcome the “no damages for delay” clause because...more
Smart phones and tablets are now commonplace on the construction job site. Are your cell phone policies as outdated as the original the flip phones that you issued to your employees? Do you even have a cell phone policy?...more
Just this weekend, after breaking up a Minecraft dispute among four my young children, I sent them back to the world of digital building. Within minutes, they were fighting again. Makes you wonder about whether whether you...more