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Mealey's Construction Defects

  • March 07, 2025

    South Carolina Appeals Court Affirms, Reverses Judgments For Subcontractors

    COLUMBIA, S.C. — The South Carolina Court of Appeal has ruled that a trial court properly granted summary judgment on a contractor’s indemnity claim against several  subcontractors and that the lower court had jurisdiction to hear the subcontractors’ summary judgment motions regardless of an underlying construction defect case.  But the panel said the trial court erred in finding that the contractor’s indemnity claims were barred by the statute of limitations.

  • March 03, 2025

    Judge: Hotel Owner Can Sue Architect For Indemnity, But Facts Are Insufficient

    GREENBELT, Md. — A Maryland federal judge said an indemnity clause in a contract does not bar a Florida hotel project owner from making a breach of contract claim against a Florida architect for alleged design defects, but the judge dismissed the claim without prejudice because an amended complaint does not alleged sufficient factual allegations to provide the architect with notice of the claim.

  • February 28, 2025

    Florida Appeals Court: Lower Court Must Stay Pending Defect Presuit Notice

    MIAMI — A Florida state appeals court panel has granted a petition for a writ of certiorari and quashed a trial court order denying a defendant’s motion to stay a construction defect case pending the plaintiff’s compliance with the state’s presuit notice requirement for such actions.

  • February 21, 2025

    South Carolina Appeals Court Affirms Summary Judgment On Indemnity Issues

    COLUMBIA, S.C. — The South Carolina Court of Appeals has rejected several appeals by a framing and window subcontractor in a construction defect case, finding that the trial court did not err in granting summary judgment to the subcontractor’s subcontractors on the issues of indemnity and defense.

  • February 21, 2025

    Judge Won’t Dismiss Window Third-Party Defendant In Construction Defect Case

    NEW ORLEANS — A Louisiana federal judge has denied a subcontractor’s motion to dismiss a third-party demand in a construction defect case, saying the plaintiff’s complaint about exterior defects can include windows even if it does not specify them at this stage of the case.

  • February 21, 2025

    South Carolina Appeals Court: Trial Judge Didn’t Explain Dismissal Of Cross-Claims

    COLUMBIA, S.C. — The South Carolina Court of Appeals on Feb. 19 in a per curiam opinion reversed a trial judge’s dismissal of indemnity cross-claims by a contractor against his subcontractors because the judge did not indicate in his dismissal order what claims he was dismissing.

  • February 21, 2025

    Texas Appeals Court Affirms Construction Defect Award, Remands Appeal Fees

    HOUSTON — A Texas state appeals court has affirmed most of a $492,363 jury award in a defective house case against developer K. Hovanian but reversed the award of appellate expert fees and unconditional appellate attorney fees for redetermination.

  • February 18, 2025

    Florida Appeals Court: Homebuilder Is Due Attorney Fees From Subcontractor

    TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — A Florida appeals court said a homebuilder is entitled to attorney fees from a subcontractor, ruling that the fees stem from an interaction between the builder and a stucco subtractor and those were separate from the homeowners’ claims against the builder.

  • February 18, 2025

    Indiana Homebuilder Agrees To Stop Imposing Gag Rule On Bad Reviews

    INDIANAPOLIS — An Indiana homebuilder has agreed to stop imposing a gag rule on home buyers, according to an assurance of voluntary compliance filed in state court by the state attorney general and the builder.

  • February 12, 2025

    Final Attorney Fees Award Granted In Decade-Old Defective Flooring Class Suit

    SAN FRANCISCO — More than four years after a class action settlement over defective bamboo flooring sold by Lumber Liquidators Inc. received final approval, a California federal judge granted a motion by class counsel for a final attorney fees award of $863,919.82, representing 25% of the value of store vouchers redeemed by class members in the last two years.

  • February 10, 2025

    New York Appeals Court Modifies Trial Court Order In Multiparty Defect Case

    ROCHESTER, N.Y. — A New York state appeals court has issued an order modifying a trial court order, reversing the lower court’s rulings allowing the addition of a plaintiff and denying cross-motions for dismissal of certain claims by various defendants in a construction defect case involving a renovated apartment building.

  • February 07, 2025

    Texas Appeals Court Reverses Defense Summary Judgment In Construction Defect Case

    HOUSTON — A Texas state appeals court has reversed summary judgment for a construction manager, general contractor and construction administrator in a construction defect case brought by a Holiday Inn division, finding that a trial court erred in its rulings on standing, statute of limitations and the economic loss rule.

  • February 07, 2025

    Maryland High Court: Seller Not Registered As Home Builder, Must Answer Cases

    ANNAPOLIS, Md. — The Maryland Supreme Court ruled that because a company that sold two houses did not register under state law as a “home builder,” a contractual one-year time limit cannot apply to two homeowners who filed separate class actions alleging they were misled about 30-year deferred sewer and water costs associated with their home purchases.

  • February 04, 2025

    2 Couples Separately Resolve Remaining Defective Construction Claims, Ending Case

    ALEXANDRIA, Va. — A federal judge in Virginia signed separate orders dismissing with prejudice the remaining claims of two couples who sued defendants involved in the construction and sale of their homes after the remaining parties filed stipulations of dismissal indicating that the couples had reached settlements that also disposed of all of their “claims as against all the other Defendants currently or formerly in this lawsuit.”

  • January 31, 2025

    Missing Papers Get New York Condo Owner Partial Judgment In Water Damage Case

    NEW YORK — Presented with missing documentation, a New York state trial justice has granted a renewed motion for partial summary judgment for a condominium owner in a construction defect case against the company that oversaw the project.

  • January 27, 2025

    New York Appeals Court: Modular Home Maker Must Face Negligence, Warranty Claims

    ALBANY, N.Y. — A New York appeals court reversed summary judgment on a negligence claim and warranty claim against the manufacturer of a modular home but affirmed other portions of a trial court’s ruling in favor of the defendant.

  • January 27, 2025

    Negligence, Fraud Claims Survive In New York Defects Case; Deception Claims Out

    BROOKLYN, N.Y. — A New York state appeals court held that a trial court did not err in denying dismissal of negligence and fraud claims in a home construction defect case, but said the plaintiffs failed to state a cause of action for alleged violations of the state’s deceptive acts and false advertising laws.

  • January 23, 2025

    California Appeals Court Affirms Denial Of Prejudgment Interest In Hotel HVAC Case

    SAN FRANCISCO — A California state appeals court has affirmed the denial of $9 million in prejudgment interest on a $17.3 million verdict in a hotel heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) defect case, agreeing that the amount of damages was in “serious dispute.”

  • January 23, 2025

    Texas Appeals Court Reverses Arbitration Denial In Construction Defect Case

    AUSTIN, Texas — In an interlocutory appeal ruling, a Texas appeals panel reversed a trial court’s denial of a motion to compel arbitration in a construct defect case, finding that none of the lower court’s apparent grounds for denial was meritorious.

  • January 17, 2025

    Local Controversy Exception Sends Development Class Action Back To State Court

    ANDERSON/GREENWOOD, S.C. — A South Carolina federal judge has remanded a construction defect class action for a large residential development because the case qualified for the local controversy exception for removal under the Class Action Fairness Act (CAFA).

  • January 13, 2025

    Tennessee Panel Affirms Verdict Against Homebuilder, Orders Damages Reset

    KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — The Tennessee Court of Appeals has upheld a breach of contract and fraudulent misrepresentation verdict against an unlicensed home contractor but remanded the construction defect case to the trial court for recalculation of compensatory damages.

  • January 10, 2025

    Louisiana Appeals Court: Arbitrator’s Nondisclosure Warranted Vacating Award

    BATON ROUGE, La. — A Louisiana appeals court has affirmed a lower court’s vacating of a construction defect arbitration award because the arbitrator failed to disclose his past involvement in two arbitrations with the homebuilder.

  • January 10, 2025

    Florida Appeals Court Wipes $425,936 Contract Breach Award For Lack Of Time Frame

    MIAMI — A Florida appeals court has reversed a $425,936 breach of contract award for homeowners in a construction defect lawsuit and ordered the trial court to enter judgment for the contractor because the plaintiffs failed to present testimony about when the alleged breach occurred.

  • January 08, 2025

    Mississippi Outlet Mall Defect Case Dismissed After Parties Reach Settlement

    OXFORD, Miss. — A federal judge in Mississippi ordered the closure of a construction defect lawsuit filed by the developer of an outlet mall after being notified that the parties had reached a settlement.

  • January 06, 2025

    Michigan Appeals Court: Contractor’s Death Didn’t Make Contract Null And Void

    LANSING, Mich. — A Michigan state appeals court says a clause in a home improvement contract did not act to make the agreement null and void after the sole proprietor’s death and to leave the homeowner unable to recover for alleged defects caused by subcontractors.