Ask an Attorney: Leaving Disputeville
“The best laid plans of mice and men go oft awry.” – Robert Burns
The above quoted line from Robert Burns’ poem “To A Mouse” is often quoted. A translation of this famous passage for modern day contractors would be: no matter how carefully and thoroughly a project is planned, something may still go wrong. Even in the best planned projects, often unanticipated things go wrong before a project can be completed. Suddenly, the unpredictable occurs. One day your project manager calls you and says that while excavating the site, a fully intact Tyrannosaurus Rex skeleton is uncovered. Or, a pandemic sweeps across the globe forcing your workforce to quarantine and placing the entire project on hold. Undoubtedly, these occurrences, which could not have been predicted, impact a contractor’s bottom line, potentially converting an otherwise profitable project into potential financial disaster. “But surely the owner will agree to pay my company additional compensation for this,” you may say to yourself. But, when you submit your claim notice and/or change order request, the owner says, “Oh, no, no, no.”
Ask an Attorney: Material Supply Issues During the Pandemic and Beyond
When traumatic, disruptive things happen, like the current COVID-19 pandemic, they create many obvious and foreseeable impacts; but they also create many not-so-obvious or foreseeable impacts. When these events occur, they not only cause financial issues but also a host of related legal issues.
Ask an Attorney: Construction Claims – An Overview
Most contractors hope their projects will proceed efficiently, within budget, on time, and, most importantly, without needing to file a claim against any of the other parties working on the job. Unfortunately, the reality often proves otherwise. Claims come in all kinds of forms – delay, extra work, acceleration, inefficiency – but essentially involve recovering any type of entitled cost or time impact. Claims can possibly risk jeopardizing the cooperation and good relationships among project stakeholders necessary to get the job done successfully. Sometimes, however, that necessary cooperation cannot overcome losing money undeservedly, making the claim a business necessity. Also, pursuing a claim under a construction contract often involves a process that can seem overwhelming.
Ask an Attorney: Five Quick Ways to Turn Your P.O. Form Into a More Protective Contract
Most contractors and subcontractors use a standard purchase order – or P.O. – form for their limited-scope projects. Attorneys often recommend supplementing the P.O. by attaching a form of general terms and conditions. Although general terms and conditions are designed to incorporate broad legal provisions that protect a contractor’s or subcontractor’s rights during a project, they can be time-consuming to prepare. Consider these five tips for quickly supplementing your P.O. forms in situations where general terms and conditions are unavailable:
Ask an Attorney: Part of the Team – Construction Lawyers as a Career in Construction
It is true that attorneys don’t physically build anything. And we don’t dig, paint, or install any materials (although I did put in a slightly uneven
BBQ patio this summer). Still, we are a career in the construction industry. My goal is the same as any other player on the project — whether it be an engineer, architect, estimator, or project manager — I seek to help the project move smoothly and without conflict. The most satisfying part of my career is when I’m able to help a construction company move forward with their projects and business decisions. Sometimes that involves guiding the company through disputes and litigation, but more often than not, the focus of my job is problem-solving and identifying and addressing risk.
Types of Claims that May Arise from Construction Project Losses Related to COVID-19
Since March, all contractors and subcontractors have been addressing the impact of COVID-19 on the industry. Contractors/subcontractors have prepared COVID-19 protocols, revised their employment practices to address the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA), evaluated financing options under various stimulus and loan packages, and handled multiple issues arising from government orders.
Safety is Everyone’s Job: Understanding OSHA Liability On Jobsites with Multiple Contractors
Ask an Attorney By: Michael Metz-Topodas & Jonathan Landesman, Cohen Seglias Pallas Greenhall & Furman PC All too often, construction professionals ask about responsibility for jobsite safety violations under the […]
Typical Growing Pains that Contractors (of All Sizes) Experience
Ask an Attorney By: Jeffrey C. Bright, Esq., Saxton & Stump, LLC From experience representing many contractors and subcontractors, we have noticed certain patterns when construction businesses grow and run […]
Certified Payroll Shortcuts May Be An Invitation for Prosecution
Ask an Attorney By: Thomas O. Williams, Esquire, Reager & Adler, P.C. Contractors working on prevailing wage projects know that the law requires them to complete and submit certified payroll […]
But We Did Everything Right! Challenging OSHA Citations with the Unpreventable Employee Misconduct Defense
By: Michael Metz-Topodas, Jonathan Landesman, and Christopher W. Sexton, Cohen Seglias Pallas Greenhall & Furman PC Despite the construction industry’s few areas of certainty, contractors can invariably count on facing […]
The Potential Cost of Retaliation in the Workplace (Or, How to Make a Bad Situation Worse)
By: Thomas R. Davies, ESQ., Partner, Harmon & Davies, P.C. In 2018, retaliation was the cause for more than half (51.6%) of all charges filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity […]
Change Orders, Change Directives, and Differing Site Conditions
By: Jeffrey C. Bright, Esq., Saxton & Stump, LLC Most project managers know that when the work, cost or schedule is modified, a change order should document the event. But […]
