Law Brief®: David Pfeffer and Richard Schoenstein Discuss the Legal Implications of Infrastructure Collapses
An issue of great importance to all construction project parties, including design professionals and contractors, is pending before the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC). In the matter of Trustees of Boston...more
AN OVERVIEW OF THE CAUSES OF ROOF FAILURE - Collapses of wood-framed roofs are frequently reported in North America, ranging from simple agricultural roofs to complex roofs in industrial buildings. Controllable factors...more
The Benefits of Collaboration - In today’s construction industry, it is no secret that there is always increasing pressure to speed up schedules and to keep costs down. One key factor that can help achieve these goals is to...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
The Texas Legislature recently passed a new law concerning owner-furnished designs for construction projects, thereby overturning more than 100 years of precedent in Texas previously holding that contractors bore the risk of...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
The Supreme Court of Utah recently found that an incorrect pre-construction geotechnical engineering report is a “defective design.” Thus, actions arising from an incorrect geotechnical report are appropriately governed by...more
On the latest Law Brief® episode, David Pfeffer, Partner and Chair of the Construction Practice, joins Host Richard Schoenstein to discuss the legal implications of building collapses, and more common partial collapses. David...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
Claims Arising Out of a Deficiency or Negligence in the Design, Planning, Construction and General Administration of Improvements to Real Property Among Those Affected. In Stearns v. Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, the...more
In Prestress Services Industries of TN, LLC v. W.G. Yates & Sons Construction Co., 280 F.Supp.3d 908 (N.D. Miss. 2017), the United States District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi faced a “rather interesting...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
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
Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport Board v. INET Airport Systems, Inc., et al., 2016 U.S. App. LEXIS 6646, 819 F.3d 245 (5th Cir. Apr. 12, 2016) - This action arose out of a construction project in terminal E of...more
The Connecticut Legislature recently introduced a bill that would subject the State to a ten year statute of repose for claims against design professionals for defective design and/or administration of construction projects....more