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Construction Delays in the Time of Coronavirus: A Legal Perspective
1. ABSENCE OF NOVATION SINKS ADJUDICATION AWARD AGAINST ASSIGNEE - A contractor obtained an adjudication award against an assignee of its employer, which had gone into administration. But was that assignee the correct...more
In this Insight, first published in PLC, Anna Blest and Katharine Tulloch consider the decision in Jaevee Homes Ltd v Fincham (t/a Fincham Demolition) [2025] EWHC 942 (TCC), in which the court concluded, among other things,...more
How long are you on the hook for defects in a completed construction project? It’s a question that keeps many contractors and design professionals up at night—and for good reason. No project is flawless, and the duration of...more
In Sze Fung Engineering Limited v Trevi Construction Company Limited [2025] HKCA 278, the Hong Kong Court of Appeal (“CA”) ruled that the “back to back” wording in that case was not a “pay when paid” clause, but governed only...more
In this Insight, Shy Jackson takes a look at the decision of John Sisk and Son Limited v Capital & Centric (Rose) Limited [2025] EWHC 594 (TCC) where the court had to grapple with interpreting a contract which was kept on a...more
A federal court in upstate New York is permitting a subcontractor’s delay claim to proceed notwithstanding a “no damages for delay” provision in the subcontract. The case, The Pike Company, Inc. v. Tri-Krete, Ltd., involves...more
A federal judge in Louisiana has dished out some harsh criticism of contractors who don’t reduce their contracts to writing. The case involves the decommissioning of 26 orphaned oil and gas wells near Baton Rouge. The...more
Liquidated damages are intended to provide predictability to the owner and contractor as to the financial consequence of not completing a project in a timely manner. Since liquidated damages are intended to compensate the...more
In the recent decision of Veolia Water Tech., Inc. v. Antero Treatment LLC, 2024 COA 126 (Colo. App. 2024), the Colorado Court of Appeals addressed the “murky” application of the economic loss rule to the intentional tort of...more
Speedy Maintenance, LLC v. Windsor Tower, LLC, 2024-Ohio-5841 (2d Dist.) is a recent case concerning a dispute over repairs to a parking garage where Ohio’s Second District Court of Appeals confronted issues....more
The Washington Court of Appeals recently affirmed a jury verdict and $30 million judgment for general contractor Skanska. The case involves the construction of the 41-story Nexus condominium tower in downtown Seattle. As is...more
If you ask owners, general contractors, or subcontractors how long the warranty lasts that they received or gave on a construction project, they will often tell you that they have a “one year warranty.” However, if the...more
With the exception of those living under rocks, construction professionals are well aware of the recent spate of litigation about the Massachusetts Prompt Pay Act. In 2022, the Massachusetts Appeals Court interpreted the Act...more
The legal concept of “privity of contract” is a common law principle which provides that only parties directly involved in a contract can enforce its terms or be held liable for its obligations. This means that third parties...more
A recent decision from the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida demonstrates how facts supported by documents generated during the project can be vital to prime contractor/subcontractor disputes. In...more
We previously blogged about the hotly contested dispute between AECOM and FlatIron involving the I-70 construction project outside of Denver. After an 18-day trial, the jury returned a verdict last month for plaintiff AECOM...more
A Utah federal court recently held that when negotiating a pass-through settlement agreement, a contractor has a duty to disclose information to its subcontractor regarding the viability of the claims to be passed through....more
A fundamental premise of contract law is that promises must be kept. If legally enforceable promises or “contracts” are not kept, courts may step in to enforce them by ordering performance, awarding damages, or granting some...more
On complex construction projects, there may be multiple contractors, subcontractors, vendors, suppliers, and sub-subcontractors working along side one another. With various entities working parallel there are substantial...more
Construction contacts often include provisions that provide for pre-determined or “liquidated” damages in the event of a breach. Such provisions can provide certainty to the parties as to the consequences of a breach and can...more
A federal court in Louisiana last week refused to enforce a limitation of liability provision included in an extra work order holding that it was trumped by the parties’ subcontract (see Planet Construction v. Gemini...more
Since July 2019, Florida has seen an influx of over 550,000 new residents, driven in large part by economic migration from other states. This population growth has been accompanied, at least until the third quarter of 2022,...more
Business relationships often begin before parties execute a written agreement containing the terms and conditions by which the relationship will be governed. With little more than a Letter of Intent (“LOI”) or Letter of...more
In New Jersey, the “economic-loss doctrine” bars tort claims when the plaintiff’s only damages are economic in nature because, when parties enter into a contractual relationship, a contractual remedy flows from contract, not...more
The purpose of a liquidated damages provision in a construction contract is to establish in advance a fair amount of compensation to the injured party for a breach of contract to avoid spending time and money fighting over...more