Key Lease Work Letter Issues When the Landlord Is Doing the Work
Law Brief®: David Pfeffer and Richard Schoenstein Discuss the Legal Implications of Infrastructure Collapses
Contractual Notice Requirements: Do You Really Need Them?
Construction Defects: Lessons Learned
California Court of Appeal Opens Doors for Construction Defect Claims Outside of the Right to Repair Act
The Connecticut Appellate Court recently provided guidance on what does not constitute property damage under a typical contractor’s Commercial General Liability (CGL) insurance policy in Westchester Modular Homes of Fairfield...more
In Nationwide Mutual Fire Insurance Co. v. Carmichael, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama, applying Alabama law, entered summary judgment ruling that Nationwide Fire Insurance Co. had no duty to...more
In two separate decisions handed down last month, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals re-affirmed that, under Pennsylvania law, claims against contractors for faulty workmanship do not constitute an “occurrence” and are...more
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit recently confirmed that liability insurers have a duty to defend their insureds in construction defect cases when the underlying complaint alleges damage to property...more
On Oct. 28, 2021, the Nevada Supreme Court in Zurich American Insurance Company v.. Ironshore Specialty Insurance Company, 137 Nev. Adv. Op. 66, held that an insured can rely on extrinsic facts to show that an insurer has a...more
While the starting point for assessing an insurer’s duty to defend requires comparing the allegations contained within a complaint to the language contained within the insured’s policy, the majority of states require an...more
McMillin Homes Constr., Inc. v. National Fire & Marine Ins. Co., 35 Cal.App.5th 1042 (2019); Fourth Appellate District Court of Appeal, Division One, Case No. D074219 (June 5, 2019). McMillin Homes Construction, Inc....more
Pennsylvania law suggests construction defects generally are not considered an "occurrence" under most CGL insurance policies because defects are not true accidents, e.g., a fortuitous event. However, an exception generally...more
In Harper Construction Co. v. National Union Fire Insurance Co. of Pittsburgh, the Southern District of California rejected an insured’s attempt to expand a CGL policy’s definition of “suit” to encompass mere demands without...more
On March 29, 2019, the Illinois Appellate Court issued an opinion clarifying when a duty to defend against construction defect allegations exists under a subcontractor’s commercial general liability (CGL) policy. The decision...more
Addison Ins. Co. v. 4000 Island Blvd. Condo. Ass’n, 2017 U.S. App. LEXIS 26870 (11th Cir. Dec. 28, 2017) - The owner of a high-rise condominium building in Florida hired a contractor to replace the building’s concrete...more
The Supreme Court of Florida recently issued an opinion in Altman Contractors, Inc. v. Crum & Forster Specialty Ins. Co., No. SC16-1420, 2017 WL 6379535 (Fla. Dec. 14, 2017), which impacts an insurer’s duty to defend and...more
Since its enactment in 2003, Chapter 558, Florida Statutes (commonly referred to as Florida’s notice and opportunity to cure provision) has governed the pre-suit notice and opportunity to repair process between owners,...more
In a case of first impression that will undoubtedly have significant effects on Florida’s construction and insurance industries, the Florida Supreme Court recently decided that an insurer’s duty to defend under a standard...more
That it took an appellate court to order AIG’s Lexington Insurance to honor its additional insured obligations is a measure of how frequently insurers attempt to dodge this important contractual obligation. The case of...more
The Colorado General Assembly is heading towards the conclusion of this year’s legislative session. Although one construction defect bill, House Bill 1279, passed the House and is expected to pass the Senate, most bills have...more
Amberwood Dev., Inc. v. Swann’s Grading, Inc., No. 1 CA-CV 15-0786, 2017 Ariz. App. Unpub. LEXIS 207 (Ct. App. Feb. 23, 2017) - This case arose out of a housing development project, with Amberwood Development Inc....more
CGL Policies; Declaratory Judgments; Appeal of a Partial Final Judgment – A commercial general liability insurer and its insured sought declaratory relief over the question of insurance coverage and the duty to defend...more
Involuntary Dismissal of Counterclaims – In a suit between a developer and general contractor, the trial court erred in dismissing the general contractor’s counterclaims, without a motion by the developer, before the...more