Mealey's Construction Defects
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May 28, 2024
Home Renovation Work Does Not Carry Implied Warranty, Iowa Panel Concludes
DES MOINES, Iowa — Two homeowners’ claim for breach of the implied warranty of workmanlike construction fails against a home flipper who allegedly failed to properly renovate a 70-year-old home’s heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) system because the flipper is not a “builder-vendor” under Iowa law, an Iowa appeals panel found in affirming a trial court’s judgment.
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May 21, 2024
Colorado Federal Judge Stays Modular Home Case In Favor Of Arbitration
DENVER — Claims arising out of the allegedly faulty construction of a modular home must be arbitrated because the claims fit within the broad scope of the arbitration clause contained within the ownership agreement signed by the homeowners and the builder, a Colorado federal judge found in granting the builder’s motion to compel arbitration.
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May 20, 2024
Renovation Manager Cannot Recover Apportionment Claims Based On Fiduciary Duties
STAMFORD, Conn. — A man who personally agreed to manage a home renovation project who was sued by the homeowner for alleged negligent supervision cannot recover apportionment claims from subcontractors that worked on the project because the homeowner’s original claims were based on a breach of fiduciary duty theory, a Connecticut judge found in granting the subcontractors’ motions to dismiss.
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May 17, 2024
In Roofing Dispute, Connecticut Judge Says Some Construction Claims Are Time-Barred
NEW HAVEN, Conn. — A homeowners association is entitled to summary judgment on claims of breach of implied contract and negligence because the plaintiff, an owner of a condominium unit that allegedly suffered from a poorly repaired roof, failed to file the two claims within the applicable statute of limitations, a Connecticut judge found in partly granting the association’s motion for summary judgment.
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May 15, 2024
Miss. Products Liability Act Is Homeowners’ Sole Remedy In Chinese Drywall Case
JACKSON, Miss. — Claims brought by homeowners who say their home was damaged by defectively manufactured Chinese drywall are subsumed by the Mississippi Products Liability Act (MPLA) because it is the sole remedy for products liability under Mississippi law, a Mississippi federal judge found in partly granting the drywall manufacturer’s motion for summary judgment.
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May 10, 2024
Developer Never Assigned Rights In Contract It Allegedly Entered With Itself
DES MOINES, Iowa — Breach of contract claims brought by the owners of a condominium complex against the developer of the complex for construction defects fail because there is no evidence that the owners were assigned the right to enforce the terms of the construction contract, which the developer allegedly entered into with itself, an Iowa panel found in affirming a trial court’s judgment.
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May 10, 2024
Homeowner Cannot File New Evidence Of Personal Property Damaged By Chinese Drywall
TAMPA, Fla. — A homeowner who claims that his home was damaged by defective Chinese drywall may not present new evidence of personal property damage one month before trial because he already submitted an itemized list of such damages and discovery has closed, a Florida federal judge found in resolving two motions filed by the drywall manufacturers.
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May 09, 2024
Grain Bin Construction Claims Fail Under Warranty, Arkansas Federal Judge Finds
JONESBORO, Ark. — The owners of a farm failed to assert their claims arising from the allegedly defective construction of four grain bins because they claimed that the builder failed to make the bins moisture-proof yet expressly agreed in the warranty of the construction contract that the bins were never designed to be moisture-proof, an Arkansas federal judge found in dismissing the owners’ claims.
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May 07, 2024
Texas High Court: Homeowners Can’t Get Exemplary Damages Without Jury Unanimity
AUSTIN, Texas — Eleven homeowners whose property was damaged by the negligent construction of a drainage pipeline through their neighborhood are not entitled to exemplary damages because the jury failed to reach a unanimous verdict on the issue, the Texas Supreme Court found in reversing an appellate court’s judgment.
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May 07, 2024
Limited Damages Renders Expert Testimony On Chinese Drywall Irrelevant, Judge Says
TAMPA, Fla. — A woman who says her former home was damaged by defectively manufactured Chinese drywall cannot introduce evidence about the estimated cost to repair the home because the damages sought are not available under the economic loss rule, a Florida federal judge found in mostly granting the drywall manufacturer’s motion to exclude expert testimony.
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May 07, 2024
Idaho Law Precludes Homeowner From Bringing Claims Against Insurer In Roofing Row
POCATELLO, Idaho — Warranty claims brought by a homeowner against an insurer and a roofing company that allegedly failed to repair a roof are barred against the insurer because insurers may not be sued under Idaho law absent a contractual or statutory provision authorizing an action, an Idaho federal judge found in granting the insurers’ motion to dismiss.
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May 06, 2024
Colorado Legislative Committee Votes To Indefinitely Postpone Construction Defects Bill
DENVER — The Colorado General Assembly’s House Transportation, Housing and Local Government Committee on May 3 voted to indefinitely postpone a bill that would have changed construction defects litigation in the state by creating a new right for builders to remedy faulty construction.
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May 03, 2024
Faulty Shingles Dispute Terminated Following Parties’ Notice Of Settlement
KANSAS CITY, Kan. — After receiving notice of settlement from a group of property owners and roofing manufacturer, a Kansas federal judge ordered a dispute over the company’s allegedly faulty shingles to be administratively terminated.
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May 02, 2024
Architect Cannot Recover Contribution From New York Town In Construction Dispute
ROCHESTER, N.Y. — An architect that was sued for providing construction plans that failed to comply with the building codes of Penfield, N.Y, cannot seek contribution from the town even though it failed to identify the noncompliant wood trusses in the construction because it is immune from liability under the government function immunity defense, a New York justice found in granting Penfield’s motion for summary judgment on the architect’s cross-claim.
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May 01, 2024
Statute Of Frauds Bars Homeowner’s HVAC Warranty Claims, Indiana Panel Says
INDIANAPOLIS — A homeowner is not entitled to bring a claim for breach of express warranty against a man who installed heating and air conditioning (HVAC) equipment in the home but refused to repair it several years later because the statute of frauds applies to the alleged warranty, which was not committed to writing, an Indiana panel found in affirming a trial court’s judgment.
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May 01, 2024
California Federal Judge Grants Default Judgment In Luxury Home Construction Case
LOS ANGELES — Two homeowners who allege that their new luxury home suffers from construction defects are entitled to default judgment against the builder of the home because it failed to make an appearance in the case and the relevant discretionary factors support granting default judgment, a California judge found in partly granting the homeowner’s application for default judgment.
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April 30, 2024
Illinois Panel: Homeowner Waived Construction Claims By Not Giving Written Notice
CHICAGO — A homeowner who claimed that the residential and commercial units she purchased in a condominium building suffered from construction defects waived any such claim because she failed to comply with the limited warranty agreement she signed by not providing written notice of the alleged defects to the developer of the building within one year of purchasing the units, an Illinois panel found in affirming a trial court’s judgment.
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April 25, 2024
Pa. Panel: Fact Issues About Contract Surround Failed Retaining Wall Dispute
HARRISBURG, Pa. — A trial court erred in granting judgment on the pleadings in a dispute over the construction of retaining wall that failed at a life plan community because there are questions of fact about which contract governs the agreement between the operator of the community and the builder, a Pennsylvania panel found in partly reversing the trial court’s judgment.
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April 24, 2024
N.Y. Justice: Unclear If Developer Is Liable For Water Damage At Condo Building
NEW YORK — The owner of a condominium building in New York City that suffered water damage from a burst pipe is not entitled to partial summary judgment on the issue of whether the developer of the building is liable under the development contract signed by the two parties because the terms of the contract are ambiguous, a New York justice found in denying the owner’s motion for partial summary judgment.
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April 23, 2024
Minnesota Appeals Court Affirms Judgment In Construction Defects Case
ST. PAUL, Minn. — A trial court did not err in offsetting a damages award granted to a homebuilder for counterclaims brought against it for defectively building a home because the builder properly perfected its mechanic’s lien on the property, a Minnesota panel found in affirming the trial court’s judgment.
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April 22, 2024
Unsigned Settlement Did Not Resolve Construction Claims, New Jersey Panel Says
TRENTON, N.J. — A trial court erred in granting a motion to enter a settlement filed by a builder, which allegedly failed to properly construct a home, and one of its agents because the settlement agreement was unsigned, a New Jersey appellate court panel found in reversing and remanding the trial court’s opinion.
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April 18, 2024
Mississippi Federal Judge Dismisses Some Claims In Chinese Drywall Dispute
JACKSON, Miss. — Homeowners who allege that a home they previously owned was damaged by defectively manufactured Chinese drywall are not entitled to damages arising from costs incurred to remediate the home because those claims travel with the property at issue, a Mississippi federal judge found in granting the manufacturers’ partial motion for summary judgment.
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April 17, 2024
North Dakota Federal Judge Transfers Claims In Defective Church Construction Action
BISMARCK, N.D. — Third-party construction defects claims brought against a subcontractor that allegedly contributed to the defective construction of a church should be transferred to the U.S. District Court for the District of Nebraska based on a forum selection clause within the subcontract because the public interest factors do not warrant upending the parties’ selected forum, a North Dakota federal judge found in granting the subcontractor’s motion to transfer on April 16.
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April 16, 2024
In Office Construction Row, Kansas Panel Affirms Jury’s Damages Award
TOPEKA, Kan. — The owner of a building that suffered from alleged construction defects that caused water intrusion presented enough evidence at trial to support the jury’s damages award regarding loss of rental income against a construction consultant that failed to resolve the water intrusion problems, a Kansas panel found in affirming the jury’s verdict.
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April 15, 2024
Oklahoma High Court: Trial Court Failed To Explain Fee Award In Roofing Dispute
OKLAHOMA CITY — In a decade-long dispute over an allegedly defective roofing repair, the Oklahoma Supreme Court found that the trial court erred in granting attorney fees to the defendant roofing company because it failed to adequately explain how it calculated the fee amount.