Seattle Washington Building Expert Directory

Consultant Says It's Time to Overhaul Construction Defect Laws in Nevada

February 07, 2013 — CDJ STAFF
Randi Thompson, a Republican political and media consultant, told the Reno Gazette-Journal what she wished Governor Brian Sandoval had said during his recent State of the State address in Nevada. Construction defect litigation was one of the issues that Ms. Thompson said that Governor Sandoval should have addressed. Thompson said that the governor "should have said it's time to get rid of Nevada's horrid construction defect laws." Ms. Thompson said that "these laws extort money from small business subcontractors who likely had nothing whatsoever do to with any real or perceived defect." She attributed the ongoing construction defect scandal in Las Vegas to "bad law." Ms. Thompson said that these issues are unlikely to be addressed, because "the Democrats control both houses in the Legislature" and the issues are "sacred cows to the Democrats' constituents." Read the court decision
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Supreme Court Addresses Newly Amended Statute of Repose for Construction Claims

June 26, 2023 — David R. Cook Jr. - Autry, Hall & Cook, LLP
We have been following the protracted legal battle concerning Southern States Chemical, Inc. v. Tampa Tank & Welding, Inc. This case had been litigated at the Supreme Court and resulted in legislation. In the latest round, the Supreme Court answered whether Georgia’s statute of repose for construction claims applies to claims arising or brought before the statute was amendment in 2020. What is a Georgia’s statute of repose? Under the statute, “[n]o action to recover damages: (1) For any deficiency in the survey or plat, planning, design, specifications, supervision or observation of construction, or construction of an improvement to real property; (2) For injury to property, real or personal, arising out of any such deficiency; or (3) For injury to the person or for wrongful death arising out of any such deficiency shall be brought against any person performing or furnishing the survey or plat, design, planning, supervision or observation of construction, or construction of such an improvement more than eight years after substantial completion of such an improvement.” The case began ten years ago when Southern States suited Tampa Tank and Corrosion Control for alleged defects in renovating a 24-foot tall, 130-foot wide storage tank. The tank renovation was completed in 2002, and in 2011, the tank was found to leak sulfuric acid. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of David R. Cook Jr., Autry, Hall & Cook, LLP
Mr. Cook may be contacted at cook@ahclaw.com

They Say Nothing Lasts Forever, but What If Decommissioning Does?

June 10, 2019 — Stella Pulman - Gravel2Gavel Construction & Real Estate Law Blog
The looming decommissioning liabilities of offshore energy producers have been a focus of the federal government in recent years. One recent case out of the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, Taylor Energy v. United States, highlights the tension between the federal government’s desire to maintain financial security for decommissioning activities, and that of an operator whose security is tied up indefinitely while the government awaits technological advances to allow for safe decommissioning. The case relates to a trust agreement between Taylor Energy and the United States, established to secure Taylor’s decommissioning liabilities for 28 wells in the Gulf of Mexico. Taylor completed certain decommissioning work for which it was reimbursed by the trust. However, with over $400 million remaining in the trust, Taylor and the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) concluded that the ecological benefits of further decommissioning would be outweighed by the ecological risks. But despite recognizing that the limitations of current technology made the environmental impacts of further decommissioning work unjustifiable, the BSEE declined to release Taylor from its decommissioning obligations and instead decided to await “changes in technology and a better understanding of the undersea environment.” Because Taylor’s decommissioning obligations remained in place, the U.S. refused to release the remaining funds in the trust. Taylor claimed that the United States should release the remaining funds in the trust because “decommissioning the remaining wells is not ‘currently technologically feasible.’” Taylor asserted that Louisiana law applied to the trust agreement, and that under Louisiana law every contract must be completed within an ascertainable term. By holding the trust funds until decommissioning was complete, Taylor argued that the government was essentially holding the funds in perpetuity given the technological infeasibility of completing decommissioning. Taylor also asserted that the agreement was premised on an impossibility (the full decommissioning of the wells), and/or a mutual mistake of the parties (that the wells could be decommissioned). Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Stella Pulman, Pillsbury
Ms. Pulman may be contacted at stella.pulman@pillsburylaw.com

An Architect Uses AI to Explore Surreal Black Worlds

October 24, 2023 — Kriston Capps - Bloomberg
For architect Curry Hackett, the appeal of using artificial intelligence to design projects isn’t to build the world of the impossibly distant future. Instead he wants to mine the near present, using machine learning to generate postcards from a world that is recognizably our own, but refracted through a lens of Black history and material design. Hackett is the designer behind a series of provocations made using AI to remix Black vernacular architecture in kaleidoscopic Afrofuturist landscapes. Specifically, he’s assembling images with Midjourney, an AI tool favored by architects to imagine what buildings might look like. Hackett’s prompts result in straightforward yet surreal sets, including roadside Popeyes kiosks in rural North Carolina, homes with inflatable porches in the Florida panhandle and park benches made out of the couch from grandma’s living room. Quilts, basket weaving and other cultural modes associated with American South are the building materials for Hackett’s speculative futures. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Kriston Capps, Bloomberg

Couple Claims ADA Renovation Lead to Construction Defects

December 30, 2013 — CDJ STAFF
A couple in Mercer County, West Virginia have claimed that the renovations done to their home not only failed to meet the requested ADA standards, but lead to construction defects, as reported by The West Virginia Record. Ray and Sherry Price are suing Lamberts Construction Company of Bluefield, West Virginia, claiming breach of contract and infliction of emotional distress. The couple hired to company to construct a bathroom addition, a bedroom addition, and a new driveway. In addition to other damages, they are also seeking the cost to repair the renovations. Read the court decision
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Best Practices: Commercial Lockouts in Arizona

April 10, 2023 — Patrick Tighe - Snell & Wilmer Real Estate Litigation Blog
If a tenant defaults under a commercial lease, Arizona law permits the landlord to re-take possession of the premises by locking out the defaulting tenant. However, if the landlord’s lockout is wrongful, the landlord may be liable for the damages the tenant sustains because of the wrongful lockout. To minimize such liability, here are some general best practices to follow when locking out a defaulting tenant:

Do Not Breach the Peace. It is vital when performing a lockout to not breach the peace. What constitutes a “breach of the peace” depends on the particular circumstances at hand. For example, if a tenant arrives during the lockout and becomes angry or threatens violence, the landlord should stop performing the lockout and return at a later time. As a general rule of thumb, it is best to perform lockouts in the early morning hours or in the late evening hours when the landlord is less likely to encounter the tenant.
Provide A Notice of Default. Many commercial leases require the landlord to provide a notice of default before the landlord can lock out a defaulting tenant. Check, double check, and triple check that the landlord followed the lease’s notice of default provisions correctly, including that the landlord sent the notices to all required parties in accordance with the time requirements set forth in the lease.

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Reprinted courtesy of Patrick Tighe, Snell & Wilmer
Mr. Tighe may be contacted at ptighe@swlaw.com

Be Mindful Accepting Payment When Amounts Owed Are In Dispute

August 29, 2022 — Nicholas Korst - Ahlers Cressman & Sleight PLLC
After completing work on a project, or even during a project, it is not uncommon for some portion of the contract balance and/or a claim to be in dispute. As a contractor or subcontractor, it is important to be careful what is signed (or not signed) upon receipt of any payment both during and after completion of work on a project. One of the most common documents signed related to a receipt of payment is a lien/claim release document. This can be in the form of a conditional, unconditional, progress and/or final release. The language included in the release document is critically important, especially as it pertains to disputed amounts. As a contractor or subcontractor, if there are known disputes related to amounts owing, whether it be contract balance, disputed change order(s), a delay or inefficiency claim, or any other amounts believed to be owed, it is important to include language in the lien release that expressly carves out the disputed amounts. The same should be done for disputes related to extensions of time. This allows the contractor to accept the payment and release rights for the undisputed work, but continue to reserve its right to pursue the amounts in dispute later. If disputed amounts are not carved out, those amounts may effectively be waived and the subcontractor or contractor may lose all rights to recovery. As a subcontractor in Alaska recently learned, there are potentially other ways a contractor may waive or lose its rights to recover amounts in dispute – without even signing a waiver or release document. In Smallwood Creek, Inc. v. Build Alaska General Contracting, LLC et al., the general contractor sent the subcontractor a check described as “final payment.” The subcontractor believed it was owed more than what the general contractor had sent and refused to accept the check. Months later, the subcontractor deposited the check. The subcontractor reversed course again and attempted to repay the general contractor the amount deposited. The general contractor refused, claiming the subcontractor’s acceptance of payment constituted satisfaction of all amounts owing to the subcontractor. Read the court decision
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Reprinted courtesy of Nicholas Korst, Ahlers Cressman & Sleight PLLC
Mr. Korst may be contacted at nicholas.korst@acslawyers.com

Beyond the Disneyland Resort: Special Events

May 03, 2018 — Beverley BevenFlorez-CDJ STAFF
Want to exchange your mouse ears for a baseball cap? The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim are home May 13th through the 20th. See the Angels play Houston on the 16th or Tampa Bay on the 17th or 18th. The House of Blues of Anaheim has moved out of Downtown Disney. Concerts you may want to attend there include VHS Collection on 5/16 at 7pm, Party Like It’s 1999! A Prince Tribute Party at 7pm on 5/18 or Life of Agony also at 5/18 at 7pm. If you’re still in town on Saturday, 5/19, you can check out School of Rock Tustin at 10am. Soulfly & Nile will be playing at the City National Grove of Anaheim on Friday, 5/18 at 6:30pm. Read the court decision
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SEATTLE WASHINGTON BUILDING EXPERT DIRECTORY AND CAPABILITIES