Mealey's Construction Defects : Mealey's : Legal News & Analysis

Mealey's Construction Defects

October 18, 2024
Florida State Judge Dismisses Home Defect Case Because It Named Defunct Contractor

BRADENTON, Fla. — A Florida state court judge has granted a defense motion to dismiss a home construction defect case against a roofing company subcontractor because the judge found that the plaintiffs knowingly filed the complaint against a long-defunct general contractor and acted in bad faith in trying to bring claims against subcontractors without the required presuit notice.
October 17, 2024
Texas Appeals Court: Pool Company Waived Arbitration By Engaging In Court Process

HOUSTON — A Texas appeals court has affirmed a trial court’s denial of arbitration in a defective pool installation case, finding that the pool company substantially invoked the judicial process to the detriment or prejudice of the plaintiffs and implicitly waived its right to arbitration under a contract.
October 14, 2024
Professional Malpractice Claim Against Home Inspector Can Proceed To Vermont Trial

WINDSOR, Vt. — A Vermont state trial court judge says a couple can go to trial with their malpractice claims against a home inspector who they say failed to thoroughly inspect the basement of a home and to warn that a water-damaged foundation was inadequately repaired, resulting in economic loss to the new homeowners.
October 14, 2024
Florida Appeals Court: Some Disaster Recovery Tasks Need Licensure, Others Don’t

MIAMI — A Florida state appeals court has reversed summary judgment for three condominium associations and remanded a nonpayment case filed by a disaster mitigation service for the court to decide which services require a Florida contractor’s license and which services don’t.
October 04, 2024
New York Appeals Court: Law, Warranty Exclude Construction Defect Damages

BROOKLYN, N.Y. — A New York state appeals court has reversed a trial court ruling denying dismissal of all claims in a condominium construction defect suit, saying the developer’s limited warranty excluded, by law, the types of damages claimed by a condominium association.
October 04, 2024
Insulated Glass Maker’s Parent Dismissed From High-Rise Construction Defect Suit

SEATTLE — A federal judge in Washington has dismissed a parent company in a condominium window glass defect lawsuit, finding insufficient ties to the directly involved subsidiary or the state.
October 04, 2024
Senior Facility Owner Can File Amended HVAC Complaint Against Subconsultant

HOUSTON — A Texas federal judge has granted a motion by the owner of a senior living facility to file an amended complaint against a heating ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) subconsultant based on newly discovered evidence about alleged defects.
October 03, 2024
Breach Of Warranty Claims Against Roofing Manufacturer Fail, 10th Circuit Affirms

DENVER — The 10th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on Oct. 2 affirmed a district court’s ruling in favor of a roofing materials manufacturer, agreeing with the lower court that a homeowners association’s breach of warranty claims fail based on the limited warranty’s disclaimer and the association’s failure to provide notice of the defect within 30 days as required by the limited warranty.
October 03, 2024
Jury Award In Favor Of Homeowners, Against Contractor Supported By Evidence

DES MOINES, Iowa — The Iowa Court of Appeals on Oct. 2 affirmed a jury verdict entered in favor of homeowners and against a contractor in a contract dispute after determining that the verdict on the homeowners’ breach of contract and consumer fraud claims is supported by “substantial evidence.”
October 03, 2024
Trial Court Properly Awarded Homeowners Costs For Contractor’s Negligence

CONCORD, N.H. — A trial court did not err in awarding homeowners the cost of connecting their home to the municipal sewer system and the cost of replacing a defective retaining wall because the evidence supports a finding that the costs were incurred as a result of the contractor’s negligent work, the New Hampshire Supreme Court said in affirming a lower court’s decision.
October 03, 2024
Issue Of Fact Exists On Breach Of Warranty Claim Related To Defective Windows

FRANKFORT, Ky. — The Kentucky Court of Appeals reversed the dismissal of a breach of warranty claim related to defective windows installed in a home after determining that an issue of fact exists as to when the homeowner became aware that the breach occurred.
October 03, 2024
Connecticut Judge Issues Judgment For Contractor, Says Homeowners’ Claims Fail

STAMFORD, Conn. — A Connecticut state judge issued judgment in favor of a contractor after determining that the homeowners’ claims alleging breach of contract and breach of statutory warranties cannot proceed because the homeowners failed to show that the contractor breached any contract or warranty and failed to offer any evidence supporting their contention that the construction of the home was completed in an unworkmanlike manner.
October 02, 2024
Connecticut Judge Strikes Claims Alleged Against Construction Company Owner

BRIDGEPORT, Conn. — A Connecticut judge partially granted a motion to strike filed by a construction company and its owner after determining that claims alleging negligence, breach of contract, unjust enrichment, breach of implied warranty and breach of express warranty against the company owner cannot proceed because the homeowner failed to allege that the company owner was part of the contract.
October 02, 2024
Homeowners’ Defective HVAC Suit To Proceed Based On Requests To Compel Arbitration

LAKE CHARLES, La. — A Louisiana federal judge denied a motion to dismiss by homeowners who filed a class action against a contractor and subcontractor because the court must retain jurisdiction over the dispute based on the contractor and subcontractor’s affirmative defense and counterclaim seeking to compel arbitration pursuant to the parties’ contract.
September 24, 2024
After Mistrial Voids $1.18M Foundation Verdict, Trial Set On Negligence Claim

ATLANTA — A Georgia federal judge has scheduled for Jan. 21 a retrial in a $1.18 million construction defect lawsuit brought by a townhouse association against a contractor after the judge said the previous judge’s mistrial order, a statute of limitations and a state supreme court ruling left negligence as the sole remaining claim.
September 20, 2024
Minnesota Appeals Court Affirms Summary Judgment In Roof Repair Case

ST. PAUL, Minn. — The Minnesota Court of Appeals has affirmed summary judgment for a roofing repair contractor, saying the homeowner failed to support his claims that the contractor failed to perform required work or did so in a substandard fashion.
September 19, 2024
California Appeals Court: Contractor Can’t Escape Attorney Fees For Homeowners

SAN FRANCISCO — A California appeals court held that the president of a construction company is liable for more than $94,000 in attorney fees and costs in a home construction breach-of-contract suit because he stood in the shoes of the company when he signed a contract and later filed a complaint against the homeowners.
September 17, 2024
Roofing Defendant Can’t Depose Plaintiff’s General Counsel, Federal Magistrate Rules

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — A Massachusetts federal magistrate judge granted a protective order blocking a defendant in a defective roofing case from deposing a defendant’s general counsel, finding that he is covered by attorney-client privilege and the attorney work product doctrine and that the defendants have other means to get information about a defendant’s possible sale.
September 13, 2024
Judge Allows Most Claims To Stay In Defective High-Rise Window Case

SEATTLE — A federal judge in Washington has denied dismissal of most claims by a condominium association against a window manufacturer/distributor for allegedly using an ultraviolet light-sensitive sealant and requiring the replacement of more than 7,800 glass panes on a 38-story building.
September 03, 2024
Panama Seeks To Prevent Delay Of $4.84M Arbitration Award

MIAMI — The Republic of Panama has asked a Florida federal court to stay discovery and to dismiss counterclaims of an American company and its principal in a case involving alleged contract violations that began when Panama filed a petition to enforce a $4.84 million arbitration award.
August 30, 2024
Judge Won’t Reopen Discovery Into Type Of Hurricane Glass Used In Home

CENTRAL ISLIP, N.Y. — A New York federal judge will not overrule a magistrate judge’s denial of a defense motion to reopen discovery in a lawsuit involving hurricane glass installed on a shorefront home.
August 30, 2024
Judge: Window Supplier Had No ‘Societal Duty’ To Homeowners For Installation

ERIE, Pa. — A Pennsylvania federal judge has dismissed homeowners’ claim that a residential window supplier breached its contract by violating a “societal duty” to warn about improper installation of windows by a third-party builder but denied dismissal of claims of promissory estoppel, breach of contract and negligent misrepresentation.
August 30, 2024
Idaho Federal Judge: UCC Claims Don’t Apply To Roofing Services

POCATELLO, Idaho — An Idaho federal judge has dismissed two defendants in a defective roofing case, finding that Uniform Commercial Code claims don’t apply to roofing services and that a Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act claim can’t survive without UCC claims. The court dismissed the complaint without leave to amend.
August 26, 2024
Only Texas Trade Practices Claim Survives In Defective Window Suit

DALLAS — A Texas federal judge has allowed a state law trade practices claim and breach of express warranty claim by an apartment complex owner to proceed against a window company but dismissed with prejudice claims of breach of contract, limited warranty and implied warranty.
August 22, 2024
California Appeals Court Reverses Judgment For Soil Inspector In Subsidence Case

SANTA ANA, Calif. — A California appeals court has reversed summary judgment in a house subsidence case, finding that a soils engineering firm failed to meet its summary judgment burden and that it owed a duty of care to the homeowners despite the alleged limitations of its involvement.