New Jersey Judge Declared Arbitrator had no Duty to Disclose Past Contact with Lawyer
October 22, 2014 —
Beverley BevenFlorez-CDJ STAFFAccording to the New Jersey Law Journal, in a recent ruling, a federal judge in Newark “ruled that an arbitration award should not be vacated based on the arbitrator’s failure to disclose his professional contacts with defense counsel during his prior career as a federal judge.”
The plaintiff had sought to vacate an award “because he failed to disclose interactions he had with Dennis Drasco, the lawyer for the defendant, while serving on the bench. But Brown was not required to disclose his contacts with Drasco because they would not cause a reasonable person to question Brown’s impartiality, U.S. District Judge William Walls ruled Oct. 21,” reported the New Jersey Law Journal.
The plaintiff’s assertions “suggest nothing more than that Judge Brown and Mr. Drasco were familiar with one another in their professional capacities,” Walls stated, as quoted by the New Jersey Law Journal.
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Honoring Veterans Under Our Roof & Across the World
November 15, 2017 —
Newmeyer & Dillion, LLPNovember 11, 2017 - In honor of Veterans Day, we would like to take time to acknowledge, honor and thank those who have served in the United States Armed Forces. We are also proud to recognize eleven of our own who have served our great country.
Ben Ammerman – United States Navy
Philip Kopp – United States Air Force
Ryan Manning – United States Marine Corps
Jason Morris – United States Marine Corps
Tyson Nakagawa - United States Marine Corps
Richard Protzmann - United States Marine Corps
Francis Quinlan - United States Marine Corps
Louis “Dutch” Schotemeyer - United States Marine Corps
Christina Soto-Maynez – United States Army
Michael Studenka - United States Marine Corps
Paul Tetzloff - United States Marine Corps
About Us
For more than 30 years, Newmeyer & Dillion has delivered creative and outstanding legal solutions and trial results for a wide array of clients. With over 70 attorneys practicing in all aspects of business, employment, real estate, construction and insurance law, Newmeyer & Dillion delivers legal services tailored to meet each client’s needs. Headquartered in Newport Beach, California, with offices in Walnut Creek, California and Las Vegas, Nevada, Newmeyer & Dillion attorneys are recognized by The Best Lawyers in America©, and Super Lawyers as top tier and some of the best lawyers in California, and have been given Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review's AV Preeminent® highest rating. For additional information, call 949-854-7000 or visit www.ndlf.com.
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Real Estate & Construction News Roundup (2/21/24) – Fed Chair Predicts More Small Bank Closures, Shopping Center Vacancies Hit 15-year Low, and Proptech Sees Mixed Results
March 19, 2024 —
Pillsbury's Construction & Real Estate Law Team - Gravel2Gavel Construction & Real Estate Law BlogIn our latest roundup, office occupancy rates hit all-time lows, global hotel investment to exceed numbers from 2023, federal courts look into real estate commissions, and more!
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Pillsbury's Construction & Real Estate Law Team
Hunton Offers Amicus Support in First Circuit Review of “Surface Water” Under Massachusetts Law
August 01, 2023 —
Michael S. Levine, Lorelie S. Masters & Janine A. Hanrahan - Hunton Insurance Recovery BlogHunton’s insurance team has offered its support on behalf of amicus curie United Policyholders in a brief to the
First Circuit concerning the meaning of “surface water” in the context of a broad, all-risk property insurance policy?
This important question arose in a dispute between Medical Properties Trust (“MPT”), a real estate investment trust, and Zurich American Insurance Company (“Zurich”), its insurer, after water entered and destroyed Norwood Hospital. The water at issue entered the building after collecting on the surface of the building’s flat parapet roof. Zurich argued that because the water collected on the surface of the roof, the water met the meaning of the term “surface water,” as that term was used in the policy’s definition of “flood.” Flood coverage is subject to a $100 million sublimit, whereas the policy’s general limit is $750 million.
Reprinted courtesy of
Michael S. Levine, Hunton Andrews Kurth and
Lorelie S. Masters, Hunton Andrews Kurth
Mr. Levine may be contacted at mlevine@HuntonAK.com
Ms. Masters may be contacted at lmasters@HuntonAK.com
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Statutory Time Limits for Construction Defects in Massachusetts
November 27, 2013 —
CDJ STAFFConstruction defect claims are governed by a section of the Massachusetts laws and allow for three years after the work was completed, unless the defect is “inherently unknowable,” according to a post by John Shaffer on the web site of his firm, Marcus, Errico, Emmer & Brooks, a New England law firm that specializes in condominium law. Those “inherently unknowable” defects fall into the six-year statute of repose.
If, for example, a roof doesn’t show “significant water leakage” until after the end of the statutory period, “the association is out of luck and the responsible parties are off the hook,” writes Mr. Shaffer. “Even if the association could prove conclusively that the roof was improperly constructed and caused significant damage, the association’s claim will be barred.”
One problem condominium associations can face is that defects in the earliest phases of building can sometimes become apparent while the developer still controls the board. “While a developer in control of a board has the same fiduciary obligation as owner-elected trustees to protect the association’s interests, it is probably safe to assume that few developers will be inclined to sue themselves.” Here, Mr. Shaffer notes that owners can join together and either “hasten the transition to owner control of the association” or “convince them to correct the identified deficiencies.”
Mr. Shaffer notes that some questions concerning the statute of repose haven’t been answered by the Massachusetts courts. He does assure readers that “developers will no doubt argue that the statute of limitations has expired on defects because the association discovered or ‘should have discovered’ their existence more than three years before the lawsuit was started.” He advises condominium associations to calculate “their filing deadlines as conservatively as possible.”
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The Best Laid Plans: Contingency in a Construction Contract
September 13, 2021 —
Josh Levy, Katesha Long & Samantha Schacht - Construction ExecutiveThis article is the first of a three-part series on contingencies in construction contracts. This series will explain:
- what a construction contingency is;
- the two primary schools of thought regarding how a construction contingency fund should be used and managed; and
- construction contract drafting considerations for contingency clauses.
Armed with this information, owners and contractors will be better equipped to tackle the inevitable project surprises.
Life is full of surprises, some good and some not too good. Surprises during construction are seldom welcome events. However, experienced owners and contractors know to expect the unexpected and plan accordingly by including contingency funds in their budgets. For them, the question is not whether or not to include a contingency, but how much to set aside and how to structure and manage the fund.
Reprinted courtesy of
Josh Levy, Katesha Long & Samantha Schacht, Construction Executive, a publication of Associated Builders and Contractors. All rights reserved.
Ms. Schacht may be contacted at samantha.schacht@huschblackwell.com
Ms. Long may be contacted at katesha.long@huschblackwell.com
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Eye on Housing Examines Costs of Green Features
July 09, 2014 —
Beverley BevenFlorez-CDJ STAFFThe National Association of Home Builders’ Eye on Housing reported that it costs more to build a green home, however, builder’s experience with green techniques reduces costs.
According to McGraw Hill Construction survey data (as quoted by Eye on Housing), “the incremental cost for builders to construct green homes was 8% in 2013. For remodelers, green projects raised costs by 9% on average.” Furthermore, “McGraw Hill’s analysis found that the cost to build green varied to some degree by the amount of green construction undertaken.”
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The “Climate 21 Project” Prepared for the New Administration
December 21, 2020 —
Anthony B. Cavender - Gravel2GavelThis is a brief review of the recently released “Climate 21 Project” policy memo. It is the work of many former members of the Obama Administration who are deeply concerned about climate change and what steps the new administration can take in the first 100 days to confront a problem. Offering “actionable advice” rather than a policy agenda, the group recognizes that Congress must do its part by providing new statutory authorities within the early days of the new administration, and the President must be prepared to aggressively exercise the powers of his office. As the members of the Group see it, there are four interlocking crises facing the President: (a) the COVID-19 pandemic; (b) the economic devastation visited upon many people by the pandemic; (c) racial injustice; and (d) accelerating threats posed by climate change.
Accordingly:
1. The Executive Office of the President must take stronger steps to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through domestic investment, rulemakings, policy changes, and international diplomacy. A new Special Assistant for Climate Change must be created to take charge of these climate change initiatives. There should also be established in the Executive Office of the President a National Climate Change Council. All agencies must be advised of the urgency of this problem. The paper seems to envision a substantial growth in the White Hose staff.
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Anthony B. Cavender, PillsburyMr. Cavender may be contacted at
anthony.cavender@pillsburylaw.com