On April 24, 2020, the City of San Diego Development Services Department issued new COVID-19 guidelines requiring all active construction sites to develop a “comprehensive COVID-19 exposure control plan,” which includes control measures such as social distancing, symptom checking, hygiene, decontamination procedures, and training. The County of Los Angeles Department of Building Safety recently a Read More…
The Americans With Disabilities Act Goes Online
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which was enacted in 1990, was intended to “provide a clear and comprehensive national mandate for the elimination of discrimination against individuals with disabilities.” The Department of Justice requires that places of public accommodation are to “furnish appropriate auxiliary aids and services where necessary to ensure effective communication with individuals with Read More…
A Look At The Changes To NRCP 68
The Nevada Rules of Civil Procedure underwent extensive changes that went into effect March 1, 2019, including NRCP 68 regarding Offers of Judgment (“OOJ”). Some of these changes are significant, and counsel and parties must be aware of them in evaluating OOJs moving forward. First, the deadline to serve an offer was modified and now Read More…
I Won My Case: Can I Recover Mediation Costs?
Clients often ask about the recoverability of fees and costs if they are successful in litigating or arbitrating a claim against a third party. As for attorney’s fees, California follows the “American Rule,” which provides that each side bears its own attorney’s fees, even if you win at trial. The general exceptions to this are Read More…
The Art Of Assigned Claims
In the context of large construction defect litigation, we are seeing more partial settlement strategies involving assignments of claims. The most common is when the Developer/General Contractor agrees as part of a partial global settlement to assign its indemnity claims against one or more of the Non-Settling Subcontractor Cross-Defendants to the Plaintiff. In theory, this Read More…
Completion Dates For Mechanic’s Liens May Extend Past Certificates Of Occupancy
While a certificate of occupancy is often looked to as the date on which a project is “completed,” a fact-intensive inquiry may be required to determine the proper completion date when looking at the validity of a mechanic’s lien. Civil Code section 8412 requires that a mechanic’s lien is recorded within (1) 90 days after Read More…
New CA Law Increases General Contractors’ Liability For Wage Claims
California Assembly Bill 1701 (“AB 1701”), which was signed into law on October 14, 2017, will expand potential liability of general contractors for unpaid wage claims on construction projects. California Labor Code section 218.7, created by AB 1701, will go into effect on January 1, 2018, and will apply to private construction contracts entered into Read More…
Nevada Supreme Court Clarifies Statute Of Limitations In Construction Defect Cases
Statutes of repose serve an important purpose in construction defect litigation. In Nevada, the statutes identify the timeframe in which a homeowner may bring a Chapter 40 claim. If a homeowner attempts to bring claims outside of the statute of repose, a developer or subcontractor can immediately seek summary judgment. There are rarely absolutes, however, Read More…
New Appellate Decision Strictly Construes SB 800 Timing Requirements
In a new decision, the Court of Appeal has strictly construed the deadlines imposed by SB 800 for builders to respond to a notice of claim. In doing so, the Court found that a notice of claim that contained only vague, boilerplate language describing a homeowner’s allegations will nevertheless trigger the 14-day period in which Read More…
Recent California Supreme Court Decision May Affect Discoverability Of Crawford Invoices
In the landmark decision of Crawford v. Weather Shield Mfg., Inc. (2008) 44 Cal.4th 541, the Supreme Court of California held that a contractual indemnitor incurs a duty to defend its indemnitee as soon as the indemnitee tenders its defense to the indemnitor. The decision had a significant impact on construction defect lawsuits, which typically Read More…
