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Construction Law Authority / Posts tagged "Construction Defects" (Page 2)

Don’t Underestimate the Importance of Repair Estimates When Evaluating Your Construction Defect Claim

February 8, 2013
Michele Ammendola
Construction Defects

Investigating and placing potentially responsible parties on notice about the existence of construction or design defects against Developers, Contractors or Design Professionals in accordance with Chapter 558, Florida Statutes, is an important part of the claims process. As their defect claims progress, Individual Property Owners and Condominium Associations may need professional assistance from their attorneys and design consultants in calculating the potential costs to correct construction or design defects. There are many other reasons why Owners or Associations would want to obtain repair proposals or estimates. For example, while repair estimates may help Owners and Associations budget for repairs, they may also help Owners and Associations to prioritize their claims for settlement purposes. Repair estimates enable Owners and Associations to identify any defects they may wish to withdraw from their Ch. 558 pre-litigation construction defects claims, or from litigation, during the course of settlement negotiations. When negotiating a...

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Learning From Others’ Lessons, That They Learned The Hard Way.

January 23, 2012
Ryan Carpenter
Cases, Construction Defects, Litigation

If an owner fails to promptly investigate symptoms of a construction defect, the owner not only runs the risk of a small problem becoming bigger and more expensive to fix, but also runs the risk of losing his or her right to hold the responsible entities accountable. Owners, like the Hochbergs, have lost claims by failing to promptly investigate defects and timely sue the responsbile entities. Others can learn from their experiences without suffering the consequences....

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What Developers and Contractors Need to Know About Destructive Testing

January 18, 2012
Michele Ammendola
Construction Defects

  Chapter 558 Fla. Stats. is Florida’s pre-suit notice and right to cure procedure, which applies before property owners may assert a claim against a developer, contractor, subcontractor or design professional for construction and design defects. It expressly provides for “destructive testing” of the defective areas of the property via written request and mutual agreement.  Destructive testing may be performed to refute the existence of defects. Examples of destructive testing may include such things as removing drywall, stucco, or other components to view the hidden conditions beneath it. At a minimum, a developer or contractor’s request for destructive testing should describe: (i) who is performing the testing, (ii) the anticipated testing methods and locations, (iii) the estimated anticipated damage and repairs to or restoration of the property resulting from the testing, (iv) the estimated amount of time necessary for the testing and to complete any repairs or restoration, and (v) who will bear...

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Defective Construction Products

December 27, 2011
webmaster
Construction Defects

Unfortunately for property owners, manufacturing and workmanship defects are prevalent in the building industry.Such defects not only represent a large cost to Community Associations and homeowners in terms of repairs, but they can also present serious health and safety issues and reduce the value of the property. I am going to identify and address, in a series of postings, some of the building products which have been alleged to be defective, and about which lawsuits have been filed.If your property was constructed with any of these materials, or you have an issue with a different material, it may be in your best interest to contact a professional in order to protect your rights and interests. If you are unsure whether any of these products were utilized in the construction of your home or condominium, it may be necessary to consult any warranty you may have, speak with your property manager or hire...

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So, You Think You’re Protected Because You Have a Performance Bond

September 24, 2011
Ryan Carpenter
Construction Defects

Well, you might not be. While you might have prudently thought ahead and gotten a performance bond from an entity downstream, to protect you from its defective work, the protection afforded by a performance bond only lasts so long. After some point, if you have not filed a lawsuit against the performance bond surety, you lose your right to make a claim and it is as if the performance bond never existed. As explained below, it might be relatively easy to determine the deadline for an owner to file a lawsuit against its general contractor’s performance bond surety, but calculating the deadline for a general contractor to file a lawsuit against one of its subcontractors’ performance bond sureties might not be so easy. A lawsuit against a performance bond must be filed within five years from the date the work at issue was completed and accepted, or the lawsuit will be...

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