In a groundbreaking move aimed at fostering fair competition and empowering workers, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued a final rule last week to ban noncompete agreements nationwide. This ruling may carry profound...more
In a recent Board decision dated December 13, 2023, the United States Army Corps of Engineers sought to amend its answer in the case of APPEALS OF – KELLOGG BROWN & ROOT SERVICES, INC., under Contract No. W912GB-13-C-0011....more
The construction industry is one of the most complex and challenging sectors. Projects can be highly demanding and require a significant amount of planning and coordination to complete successfully. However, with advancements...more
Social media has become a powerful tool for small to medium-sized construction companies to generate leads for both residential and commercial projects. With over 3 billion people using social media worldwide, there is a huge...more
2/21/2023
/ Arrangement and Promotion ,
Business Development ,
Business Strategies ,
Construction Project ,
General Contractors ,
Lead Generators ,
Marketing ,
Online Platforms ,
Real Estate Development ,
Real Estate Market ,
Social Media
It’s that time of year again – the holiday season is upon us, and for those in the construction industry, that can mean a few extra challenges when it comes to maintaining efficiency on the job site. Here are five best...more
If you are a homebuilder, residential housing developer, construction industry insurer, or any one of the many participants in the industry providing affordable and decent housing for the citizens of South Carolina, you are...more
In BCD Associates., LLC v. Crown Bank, CA No. N15c-11-062 (Super. Ct. Del, May 2, 2022), the trial court found that when a bank pays a contractor directly, it can create a legally binding relationship subject to the terms of...more
7/11/2022
/ Breach of Contract ,
Construction Contracts ,
Construction Loans ,
Construction Project ,
Contract Disputes ,
Contract Terms ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Loan Agreements ,
Misrepresentation ,
Promissory Estoppel ,
Real Estate Market ,
Renovations ,
Third-Party Beneficiaries ,
Unjust Enrichment
In Mankin Media Systems, Inv. v. Timothy Crowder, No. 19CV-48300W (Jun. 30, 2022), the Court of Appeals of Tennessee reversed the confirmation of an arbitration award because the so-called arbitration clause appeared in the...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, who just “looks like” she’s up to no good. In the world of construction...more
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
Last month, the Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals held that a public contractor could not recover $100k in construction costs incurred following the government’s decision to close down a base in Tennessee due to...more
6/22/2022
/ Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals ,
Business Interruption ,
Construction Contracts ,
Construction Project ,
Contract Disputes ,
Contractual Liability Exclusions ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Cost Recovery ,
Federal Contractors ,
Government Shutdown ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Public Health Emergency ,
Public Projects ,
US Air Force
Last month, a construction worker died as a storm swept through a construction site in Lebanon, Indiana. The preliminary investigation determined that the contractor was on an elevated platform while working on an industrial...more
I have seven children, and two of them have flown the coop. I also have two grandchildren who are ripe for spoiling. You see, grandchildren are a different type of kid, which means I get to treat them different than the...more
Virginia has joined 11 other states that have expressly prohibited “pay if paid” clauses in construction contracts. If you have construction projects in Virginia, then read on. If you want know whether your state prohibits...more
6/15/2022
/ Condition Precedent ,
Construction Contracts ,
Construction Project ,
Contract Terms ,
Contractors ,
New Legislation ,
Pay if Paid ,
Pay When Paid ,
Prompt Payment ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Subcontractors ,
Virginia
North Carolina Avenue is one of the hottest properties in Monopoly, says most of my kids. And if you are a contractor or subcontractor in North Carolina, the law makers recently afforded you some additional protections to...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
We live in a world of e-mails, IMs, texts, Snapchats, TikToks, Instagrams and the occasional fax. Although information is transmitted instantaneously in today’s environment, proof of receipt of that information (often called...more
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
If you are left in the dark about something, you don’t have the information you should have to make an informed decision. Delay claims on a construction can be confusing, especially when you think about the delay to the work...more
9/24/2020
/ Business Disruption ,
Construction Contracts ,
Construction Industry ,
Construction Litigation ,
Construction Project ,
Contract Disputes ,
Contract Terms ,
Damages ,
Delay Claims ,
Public Projects ,
Sovereign Immunity
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
I have been thinking of launching a leadership mastermind for construction professionals. And this idea came to me over the past month as the world basically came to a complete halt—except for the construction industry,...more