Contract Interpretation

Quick Thoughts for Construction Contracting: Don’t Overlook the Entities – Part 1Sometimes the best advice is the advice we already know, but a timely reminder makes all the difference.  In this first blog post of the series, the advice is exactly that. Get the right entities on the dotted lines.

You’ve spent weeks negotiating the minutiae of change order procedures, hemming and hawing on completion dates,

Two Wrongs Don’t Make a Right: Unlicensed Contractors Can Pursue Designers for NegligenceThe North Carolina Court of Appeals recently determined that a builder who fails to comply with state licensing requirements may still pursue a negligence claim against design professionals. In Wright Construction Services, Inc. v. The Hard Art Studio, PLLC, the owner contracted with architecture firm Olive Architecture to develop plans for a mixed-use complex

Non-compliance with Change Order Requirements Dooms Differing Site Conditions ClaimOn November 6, 2020, the Kentucky Court of Appeals affirmed a trial court’s decision dismissing a contractor’s differing site conditions claim on a sewer replacement project. In TSI Construction, Inc. v. Louisville and Jefferson County Metropolitan Sewer District, the appellate court concluded that the contractor’s failure to comply with contractual provisions necessary to preserve its

Posture Away, You May Still Get Your WayThe Sixth Circuit recently reversed a decision from an Ohio federal court related to whether a party waived its arbitration rights through posturing correspondence written prior to the filing of litigation or arbitration. In Borror Property Management, LLC v. Oro Karric North, LLC (No. 2:19-cv-04375), the Sixth Circuit upheld the defendant’s contractual right to arbitration

Federal Prompt Pay Act Does Not Afford Subcontractors Right to Sue General ContractorOn October 15, 2020, in EMTA Insaat Taahhut ve Ticaret A.S. v. Cosmopolitan Incorporated, a federal district court held that the federal Prompt Pay Act (PPA) (31 U.S.C. §§ 3901, et al.) does not create a private right of action for a subcontractor against a general contractor.  The dispute arose from a project for

Policy Clauses, Exclusions and Endorsements: Language MattersThe Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals just reminded policyholders that while coverage exclusions are to be read narrowly, they must also be read comprehensively.

In Engineered Structures, Inc. v. Travelers Property Casualty Company of America, Engineered Structures, Inc. (ESI) obtained a builders’ risk insurance policy from Travelers Property Casualty Company of America (Travelers) to

Absent Timely Revocation, Government Acceptance Is ConclusiveIn a recent decision, the Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals issued a summary judgment ruling in a case involving government claims relating to the contractor’s supply of thermal sight systems for armored vehicles. The government contended that some of the sights were defective while others were delivered late.

As to the allegedly defective

Subcontractor Certification of Pass-Through Claim — Defective but CorrectableIn June, the Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals (ASBCA) addressed whether it had jurisdiction where a subcontractor pass-through claim was certified under the Contract Disputes Act (CDA) by the subcontractor’s president, not the prime contractor’s representative. In its motion to dismiss, the government argued that under the CDA, only the prime contractor could certify

Contract, Project, and Arbitration in Florida? State Has Personal Jurisdiction Over Action to Enforce Arbitration AwardOn June 24, 2020, in Sayers Constr., LLC v. Timberline Constr., Inc., et al., a Florida District Court of Appeal affirmed a trial court’s denial of a contractor’s motion to dismiss. The contractor moved to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction in a dispute with a subcontractor over confirmation of an arbitration award. The

New York is Pro-Choice on Forum Selection ClausesIn Somerset Fine Home Building, Inc. v. Simplex Industries, Inc., the Appellate Division of the Second Department in New York upheld a dismissal based on the plaintiff’s breach of the parties’ forum selection clause. Somerset Fine Home Building entered into a sales contract with a modular home supplier for the purchase of a