Under the Massachusetts statute of repose, tort claims involving improvements to real estate generally must be initiated within six years of the improvement’s opening to use. So, for example, if a worker suffers a jobsite...more
Even though construction cases often involve colorful facts, legal opinions are often quite boring. When a judge writes a colorful opinion about an otherwise boring case, we tip our hat. This week we tip our hat to Judge...more
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court will decide a pivotal case that could significantly impact the construction industry and the application of the state’s construction Statute of Repose. Aloia v. Diamant raises key questions...more
The grace period for claims that would have been viable under Florida’s 10-year statute of repose, but were no longer viable after Florida shortened the statute of repose to 7 years, is quickly approaching its expiration. On...more
Warranties provided to project owners are often some of the most-negotiated provisions in a construction contract. What will the warranties cover? How can they be enforced? Perhaps most importantly: how long will they be...more
While Colorado struggles with an ongoing housing supply deficit and potential buyers grapple with interest rate resistant prices and higher costs of borrowing, local and state governments are entertaining all kinds of...more
Johnson v. Toll Brothers, Inc., 302 A.3d 1231 (Pa. Super. 2023) - This matter concerned claims of defective construction by the plaintiff against defendant for a home built in 2004. The plaintiff’s suit was filed after the...more
The Pennsylvania Statute of Repose for Improvements to Real Property, 42 Pa. C.S. § 5536 (PA Statute of Repose) is a powerful tool that provides protections to persons lawfully performing or furnishing the design, planning,...more
In residential construction, the recent legislative amendments to Chapter 27 of the Texas Property Code (the Residential Construction Liability Act or the “RCLA”) have garnered significant attention in the industry, and...more
It’s a contractor’s worst nightmare: someone you haven’t heard from in ages, or ever, sues you, claiming a defect in the construction you performed years ago. But when is it too late to bring such a claim? You may think that...more
HB 2024 - Statute of Repose Shortened to Six Years if a Builder Provides a Warranty - A statute of repose is the outside deadline for a claimant to bring a legal action. For nearly 50 years, Texas has imposed a ten-year...more
On April 13, 2023, governor Ron DeSantis signed Senate Bill 360 (“SB 360”) into law, which drastically reduces the time limit for property owners to file suit against builders and construction professionals for construction...more
On April 13, 2023, and as part of other recent tort reform measures implemented in Florida, Governor Ron DeSantis signed Senate Bill 360 into law. This most recent bill makes changes to, among other laws, Florida Statute...more
On April 7, 2023, New Mexico’s governor, Michelle Lujan Grisham, signed into law New Mexico’s Right to Repair Act (Act), 2023 N.M. SB 50. The Act’s effective date is July 1, 2023. The Act applies to construction defects in...more
Last October, Rumberger attorney Jason Bullinger and attorney Dan Webster at Daniel J. Webster, P.A. obtained a win for Florida contractors, engineers, and architects in Florida by persuading a Volusia County Circuit judge...more
In University of Massachusetts Building Authority v. Adams Plumbing & Heating, Inc., 2023 Mass. App. Unpub. LEXIS 28, 102 Mass. App. Ct. 1107, the Appeals Court of Massachusetts (Appeals Court) considered whether the lower...more
In Venema v. Moser Builders, Inc., 2022 PA Super. 171, 2022 Pa. Super. LEXIS 414, the Superior Court of Pennsylvania (Superior Court) upheld an award of judgment on the pleadings from the Court of Common Pleas of Chester...more
Good news for homebuilders in Pennsylvania. The Pennsylvania Superior Court earlier this month affirmed a trial court order that awarded judgment on the pleadings in favor of the builder and dismissing the homeowners’...more
The North Carolina Court of Appeals recently issued a decision in Gaston County Board of Education v. Shelco, LLC, et al that has the potential to significantly impact the time limits for claims on construction projects....more
In State Farm Fire & Cas. Co. v. Wangs Alliance Corp., No. 21-cv-10389-AK, 2022 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 26712, the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts (District Court) considered whether a product...more
On Tuesday, January 18, 2022, Governor Murphy signed into law Senate Bill 396, which automatically tolls (i.e. pauses) the 6-year Statute of Limitations for construction defect claims by condominium and/or homeowner...more
A new bill has recently been submitted to the Florida Senate (SB 2022-736) that proposes to amend Fla. Stat. § 95.11(3)(c) by eliminating the current statute of repose for latent claims, which requires an action be commenced...more
Statutes of repose establish a legislature’s determination of when defendants should be free from liability. As set forth in Nevada Revised Statute (NRS) 11.202, the statute of repose for construction improvements in Nevada...more
As the end of the 87th Texas legislative regular session approaches, we appear to be on the verge of having new, shortened statutes of repose for design and construction claims by certain Texas governmental entities. This is...more
In Mondoux v. Vanghel, No. 2018-219, 2021 R.I. LEXIS 2, 2021 WL 264542, the Supreme Court of Rhode Island considered whether to apply the “discovery rule” to toll the ten year statute of limitations in R.I. Laws § 9-1-13(a)...more