Construction

Unsigned Contract = No Proper Insurance Coverage

File this one under “Oops.” The unsigned contract meant that the contractual liability exclusion in the subcontractor’s insurance policy would control, since there was no obligation “assumed in a contract or agreement . . . [where the claim]… Read More
Read More

“Self-Performed” Does Not Include Labor Sub’s Work

The contractor on a large project engaged laborers through a sub, who may have been a labor broker. The contract allowed a higher fee on “self-performed” work, and the contractor claimed this labor as “self-performed.” But the Nevada Supreme… Read More
Read More

Reference to Arbitration in Contract Was Sufficient Notice of Arbitration Clause

Homeowners who claimed not to have read the contract nonetheless signed a 10-page form with two critical items: (1) a check box indicating arbitration and not litigation for dispute resolution, and (2) incorporation by reference of general conditions… Read More
Read More

It Doesn’t Pay to Lie – Insurance Edition

The sad part about decisions abrogating insurance coverage, based on misrepresentations by the insurance applicant, is that innocent third parties often suffer from the lack of coverage. A recent Pennsylvania decision provides one more example. The J… Read More
Read More

When the Indemnity Names the Wrong Entity

It’s a problem. Per the court: “Just as ‘Ten’ is not ‘Twenty,’ a ‘corporation’ cannot mean ‘a limited partnership.'” So a surety who obtained an indemnity agreement for claims arising from bonds… Read More
Read More

Indemnities, and Establishing Priority of Multiple Insurance Policies

Contractor lent a vehicle to a sub, and the sub’s employee caused a fatal accident. The subcontract had an indemnity in favor of the contractor. Five insurance policies were in play: (1) sub’s auto policy, (2) sub’s GL, (3) sub’s umbrella, (4… Read More
Read More

GL Exclusion for Liability Insured Under a Wrap-Up? Ambiguous.

Per a federal court, a GL exclusion that refers to a “wrap-up” is ambiguous, so the carrier’s request for summary judgment against coverage was denied, and the plaintiffs’ corresponding request to establish coverage was allowed. The underlyin… Read More
Read More

No-Damage-for-Delay Clause Did Not Bar Acceleration and Inefficiency Claim

Where a sub was told that no additional time would be granted under any circumstances, the additional costs it incurred for acceleration and inefficiency could be recovered, even with a contract no-damages-for-delay clause. Also, the sub’s use of a… Read More
Read More

How Do Additional Insured Obligations Work with Subcontract Flow-Down Clauses?

They don’t. Unless the subcontract is carefully drafted, that is. So where the prime contract required the owner to be named as an additional insured, and the subcontract flow-down clause passed along the GC’s obligations to the owner, as the sub… Read More
Read More

Indemnity Obligation Typically Includes Attorneys’ Fees

The “American rule” in litigation is that each party must pay its own legal fees, absent a contract or statutory right to recover the same from another party. But the nature of an indemnity is one where legal fees incurred by the indemnitee shoul… Read More
Read More