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
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
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
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
Statutes of limitations and statutes of repose, when applicable, can provide time-based defenses that will bar a complaint filed against contractors and design professionals, whether the claim is based in contract or in...more
The COVID-19 pandemic has affected every aspect of our lives, and the legal system is no exception. Court hearings went from being in-person to virtual, and court dockets swelled as cases were postponed. In 2023, the legal...more
On July 13, 2023, the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit reversed the dismissal of a putative class action asserting claims against a poultry producer and certain of its officers under Section 10(b) of the...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, Governor Ron DeSantis signed Senate Bill No. 360 (the Act), an act that affords greater protection from suits to members of Florida's construction industry. The Act amends § 95.11, Florida Statutes,...more
On April 11, Governor Wes Moore signed into law the Child Victims Act of 2023, which permits survivors of child sexual abuse to file a civil lawsuit at any time, repealing both the current statute of limitations and the...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
Senate Bill 360, which was signed by Governor DeSantis on April 13, 2023, amends the statute of limitations and statute of repose for construction claims and amends the statutory building code violation claim. The 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
On April 13, 2023, Florida’s governor, Ron DeSantis, signed into law SB 360 which, among other things, shortens the statute of repose period for improvements to real property. The law also revises the date on which the...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
Brief Summary - Three brothers—Bruce, Brad, and Brian Brandolino (plaintiffs)—held remainder interests in a piece of real property (Property) which their father sold to a bank in 2005. In 2019, plaintiffs sued the...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
In Wascher v. ABC Ins. Co., No. 2020AP1961, 2022 Wisc. App. LEXIS 110 (Feb. 9, 2022), the Court of Appeals of Wisconsin considered whether the plaintiffs were barred — by Wisconsin’s 10-year statute of repose for improvements...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
This quarter’s issue includes summaries and associated court opinions of selected cases decided in August and September 2021. Appraisal Rights - Delaware Supreme Court Enforces Sophisticated Investors’ Waiver of Appraisal...more
This quarter’s issue of Inside the Courts — An Update From Skadden Securities Litigators includes summaries and associated court opinions of selected cases principally decided in May-August 2021....more
An Illinois appellate court held that: (1) plaintiffs' motion to amend their complaint was properly denied where the six-year statute of repose (735 ILCS 5/13-214.3(c)) barred the proposed amended claims based (in part) on...more
Brief Summary An Illinois appellate court held that the statute of repose barred a plaintiff's legal malpractice claim, and that the plaintiff's claim of fraudulent concealment to toll the statute failed. The court also...more
The Fifth Circuit held that the 15-year Texas statute of repose barred a family’s claims regarding the rollover of a truck. The court was required to interpret the statutory language “date of the sale of the product,”...more