Law Brief®: David Pfeffer and Richard Schoenstein Discuss the Legal Implications of Infrastructure Collapses
Last week we were lucky enough to attend the Institute of Energy Law’s 23rd Annual Energy Litigation Conference in Houston, TX, and hear its unique collection of industry professionals exchange insights and address some of...more
In 2014, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court issued its much-anticipated opinion in Tincher v. Omega Flex, Inc., 628 Pa. 296, 104 A.3d 328 (2014). That case was a product liability action based on a design defect. The defense bar...more
The West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals recently reversed, in part, and affirmed, in part, a lower court decision regarding dismissal of contractual indemnity and implied indemnity claims. WW Consultants was the design...more
A recent win by a team of Bradley construction attorneys highlighted the role emergency arbitration proceedings can play in a dispute subject to an arbitration agreement. The ongoing case involves the design and construction...more
Generally, the implied warranty of the adequacy of the plans and specifications, also known as the Spearin Doctrine, allocates risk to the owner for any defect in the design of the project. This influential federal decision...more
On September 1, 2021, Texas S.B. 219 went into effect. This new law incorporates Chapter 59 into the Texas Business and Commerce Code. In short, when a client provides plans or specifications containing design defects to a...more
Prior to the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in United States v. Spearin, 248 U.S. 132 (1918), virtually all construction risk was borne by the contractor, except for (i) express carve-outs set forth in a contract or (ii)...more
DAK Americas Mississippi, Inc. v. Jedson Engineering, Inc. et al, No. 1:18cv31-HSO-JCG, 2019 BL 208838 (S.D. Miss. June 6, 2019) - This dispute arose out of the design and construction of a concrete storage slab at DAK’s...more
After meeting for 140 days at the Capitol, Texas Legislators adjourned the 86th Legislative Session on May 27th, 2019. For the construction industry as a whole, many are saying that the 86th Legislative Session was one of the...more
For 140 days, starting on Jan. 8, 2019, the 150 members of the Texas House of Representatives and 31 members of the Texas Senate, under the leadership of Governor Greg Abbott, will gather for the 86th Texas Legislative...more
Most states have statutes of repose, which define the date certain for parties to assert any and all claims for construction and design related issues, and provide a final cut-off for liability with respect to a project. For...more
Charlotte Student Hous. DST v. Choate Constr. Co., 2018 NCBC LEXIS 88 (N.C. Super. Ct. Aug. 24, 2018). This case arose from the construction of a student apartment complex known as Arcadia. The plaintiffs, Arcadia’s...more
City of Whiting v. Whitney, Bailey, Cox & Magnani, LLC, 2018 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 44943 (N.D. Ind. Mar. 20, 2018) - The City of Whiting, Indiana (the “City”) undertook a 26-acre lakefront development project. It hired an...more
WTE-S&S AG Enters., LLC v. GHD, Inc., 2017 Bankr. LEXIS 2343 (Bankr. N. D. Ill. August 18, 2017) - This breach of contract dispute arises out of a contract to design and build a cow-manure digester on a farm in Wisconsin. ...more
Our readers may recall that Public Act No. 15-28 was signed by the Governor back in 2015, subjecting the State of Connecticut and its political subdivisions to a statute of limitations for asserting actions and claims arising...more
In a recent Missouri appellate decision, the court recognized and reaffirmed the Spearin Doctrine which provides that an owner impliedly warrants the adequacy of plans and specifications it provides to a contractor. In Penzel...more
Although the federal courts have followed the Spearin doctrine since 1918, it took Missouri just shy of a century to come on board. Under U.S. v. Spearin, it was held that when a government entity includes detailed...more
I read in my Twitter feed this morning about a recent case where the Missouri Court of Appeals formally adopted the Spearin Doctrine. I immediately wondered if I could explain the Spearin Doctrine in less than 140...more
Balfour Beatty Infrastructure, Inc. v. Mayor and City Council of Baltimore, 2017 U.S. App. Lexis 7252 (4th Cir., April 25, 2017) - The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit recently addressed whether the...more
The legal doctrine of implied fitness of design warranty, recognized by the U.S. Supreme Court, provides that a contractor bound to build according to plans and specifications prepared by an owner will not be responsible for...more
LaShip, LLC v. Hayward Baker, Inc., 2017 U.S. App. LEXIS 3694 (5th Cir. Mar. 1, 2017) - Beginning in 2007, LaShip, LLC (“LaShip”) undertook the construction of a large shipbuilding facility in Houma, Louisiana (the...more
Maryland recently reaffirmed application of the “economic loss doctrine” to damages sought in construction disputes in Balfour Beatty Infrastructure, Inc. v. Rummel Klepper & Kahl, LLP, No. 496, Sept. Term 2014, 2016 WL...more
In a case of first impression, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit affirmed the dismissal of design defect claims against a residential homebuilder under New Jersey’s Product Liability Act when the homeowner...more