In our companion post, we looked at the quirks that make Virginia’s mechanic’s lien law unique. A link to that post is here. Just across the Potomac, Maryland’s version of the same tool is built on a completely different foundation. If you build, renovate, or supply materials on a Maryland project — or own
Companies in the construction industry face the risk of disputes every day, and defending those disputes means incurring attorneys’ fees. While companies sometimes pay those attorneys’ fees out of pocket, they may be able to trigger insurance coverage — either their own policy or that of another party on the project — to fund their
Every state gives contractors, subcontractors, and suppliers some form of lien right when they aren’t paid for work that improves real property. But Virginia’s version of this tool stands out from most other states in several important ways. If you do construction work in the Commonwealth — or own property that’s being built or renovated
A federal judge in Houston has struck down the race-based aspects of two local contracting programs intended to remedy past discrimination as unconstitutional. The City of Houston’s program set goals for the percentage of contracts awarded to minority-owned businesses and allowed departments to impose contract-specific percentage requirements on non-minority-owned businesses. Non-minority-owned businesses were required to meet
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit recently affirmed a decision of the Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals (ASBCA) denying a contractor’s differing site condition claim on a flood control project along the Trapp Canal in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana. Hamp’s Construction LLC v. Secretary of the Army, No. 2024-1528 (Fed. Cir.
A Texas appellate court recently applied the economic loss doctrine to reverse a nearly $10 million jury verdict in favor of a pipeline contractor.
The dispute arose from the construction of a 32-mile natural gas pipeline in West Texas. After disagreements developed during the project, the contractor sued the project owner for breach of
The Boldt v. Black & Veatch saga continues. As you may recall, the dispute involves a 60-turbine wind farm in Good Hope, Illinois. The general contractor, Black & Veatch, terminated its subcontractor Boldt for delays installing the turbines. Boldt claimed the delays were excusable and filed suit for wrongful termination. Black & Veatch counterclaimed for
Contract law is about holding people to their promises. Bankruptcy law does just the opposite. Authorized by the Constitution and created by Congress, the U.S. bankruptcy system consists of an entire body of federal statutory law found in Title 11 of the U.S. Code (known as the Bankruptcy Code). The general aim is to give people and
A recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) bid protest decision highlights a recurring issue in federal procurements: Agencies often take corrective action, but reevaluation errors can still lead to a sustained protest. In N&S Property Services, LLC, GAO sustained a second protest after corrective action, finding that the agency’s evaluation was unreasonable, poorly documented, and
A recent order from the Civilian Board of Contract Appeals in Zhang v. General Services Administration offers important guidance on the scope of discovery obligations in federal contract disputes — particularly where responsive records are held not by the respondent agency, but by a separate federal entity.
The decision merits attention for its analysis of