Category Archives: Construction Law
Appeals Court Affirms Summary Judgment for Contractor on Common Law Indemnity Cross Claim
When a home renovation project goes wrong and leads to litigation, the lawsuit brought by the homeowner will ultimately seek to determine who among potentially responsible parties – including contractors and various subcontractors – is responsible for any and all of the damage that occurred. In this type of lawsuit, the various contractors and… Read More »
Construction Defects – Time Limits under Florida’s Statute of Limitations
Moving day, whether it involves moving into a brand-new home or an older home that has been renovated, renewed or refreshed, is the culmination of a long planning process that involves many details and lots of decisions. Even a more limited construction project, such as an addition or a renovation, requires careful attention and… Read More »
Preventing Construction Worker Falls
Workplace injuries occur across all industries and can affect workers in all roles. When it comes to worker fatalities in industry, the construction industry factors significantly in statistical calculations. According to OSHA, on-the-job fatalities, lead to more than 14 deaths per day across all industry sectors in 2018. Of private industry fatalities for the… Read More »
Florida Lien Law – What Does Your Contract Say About Who Pays Subcontractors?
Florida’s lien law is made up of several parts, each of which governs liens in different types of businesses or industries. The first part of the lien law – which covers construction liens – covers construction liens, an important subject for anyone involved in a construction project, whether a contractor, subcontractor, or property owner…. Read More »
Legal Remedies for Slow Moving Contractors
Home improvement projects involve time and effort – from the planning stages to finding a contractor to finally seeing the plan take shape. Sometimes, the time it takes in between finding a contractor and seeing the plan take shape seems excessive. Complaints about undue delay are not uncommon. Homeowners (or other contracting parties) often… Read More »
Statute of Limitations – Actions Based on the Design, Planning or Construction of Improvements to Real Property
For various types of lawsuits, except for actions seeking to recover real property, Florida provides limitations periods, often referred to as statutes of limitations, in Fla. Stat. 95.11. Basically, these laws limit the time that a plaintiff has to file a lawsuit based on a particular type of claim. Under Fla. Stat. 95.11(3)(c), for… Read More »
The Law Governing Latent Construction Defects
Defects in construction are usually seen and discoverable by the owner who has received the deliverable. These defects are clear to the naked eye or they are discoverable after some technical investigation. As such, the statute of limitations begins to run when the defect is discovered for the purposes of making a claim. However,… Read More »
Florida Construction Worker Failed to Establish Workers’ Compensation Claim
Construction work can be dangerous. It comes as no surprise, therefore, that reports of accidents and injuries are not uncommon when it comes to construction projects. Even this early in the year, news outlets contain reports of construction related injuries that have occurred in Florida in 2020. In South Florida, for example, a construction… Read More »
FLORIDA’S NOTICE OF COMMENCEMENT
A Notice of Commencement is a document that officially establishes the beginning date of a project, or the date on which a supplier first afforded materials or labor. It is filed and recorded in the requisite local or state office in the county in which the project is situated, and usually must be provided… Read More »
Lower Court’s Decision to Grant Summary Judgment for Subcontractor in Breach of Contract Action Reversed
Recently, the Florida District Court of Appeals, Fourth District, reversed a lower court’s decision to grant summary judgment to a subcontractor in a breach of contract action. In that case, Prime Investors & Developers v. Meridian Companies, the subcontractor was hired to install cabinets and countertops in a Miami-Dade County hotel. The District Court… Read More »
