Yesterday, Representative Joe Rice introduced into the Colorado House of Representatives House Bill 10-1394, “A Bill for an Act Concerning Professional Liability Insurance Policies Issued to Construction Professionals.” The bill, also sponsored by Senator Mark Scheffel, was assigned to the House Business Affairs and Labor Committee, which happens to be chaired by Representative Rice. The summary of […]
Colorado Construction Litigation Blog
Subcontract agreements often include provisions requiring a subcontractor to defend and to indemnify a general contractor. If properly phrased in the subcontract agreement, the duty to defend can be triggered more easily than, and is distinct from, the duty to indemnify. In Lafarge North America, Inc. v. KECI Colorado, Inc., 2010 WL 726052 (Colo. App., March […]
I am happy to have been asked by Lorman Education Services to moderate and speak at its Construction Defect Claims seminar on June 24, 2010. Information regarding the seminar can be found here. Note: You can receive $50 dollars off if you register with priority code 15000 and discount code Z7745121. Other speakers at this seminar […]
Sheri Roswell and I will be speaking at the 17th Anniversary West Coast Casualty’s Construction Defect Seminar, to be held on May 13th and 14th at the Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim, California. For those of you who have not had the opportunity to attend one of the first 16 seminars, the WCC seminar is “the […]
I was recently asked to write an article for the Colorado Builder Forum, the Journal of the Colorado Association of Home Builders. Being an attorney that has devoted my career to defending Colorado homebuilders involved in construction defect lawsuits, the topic I chose was naturally strategies for minimizing the risks associated with building in Colorado […]
In Cochran v. West Glenwood Springs Sanitation District, 223 P.3d 123 (Colo. App. 2009), the plaintiff-homeowner brought a claim against the sanitation district alleging that its negligent maintenance of a sewer line damaged her home. Pursuant to the court’s factual findings, the plaintiff’s claim accrued, and she discovered her injury, on August 24, 2006. She […]
On February 2, 2010, the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals issued its decision in AIMCO v. Nutmeg Ins. Co., 593 F.3d 1188 (10th Cir. 2010). While not a construction defect case, this case is very interesting and will certainly have an impact on the determination of coverage (and in particular duty to defend cases) for […]
Recently, Robert August suggested that I pick up a copy of Conflicts With Interest, a novel by Michael Ruddy. Having now read the book, I understand why he made the suggestion. Michael Ruddy is not just an author, he is a Colorado homebuilder who wrote a book about residential construction defect litigation. The biographical information from the […]
In an order by Judge Marcia Krieger, the homeowners in a recent construction defect case caught a lucky break. By way of background, Mark A. and Mark L. Hildebrand were the plaintiffs in a construction defect lawsuit against their builder, New Vista, and one of its principals, Richard Reeves. The claims against Mr. Reeves were […]
In a February 1, 2010 Order on Plaintiff United Fire’s Second Motion for Reconsideration, Judge Brimmer, of the United States District Court for the District of Colorado, dealt yet another blow to coverage for construction defect claims in Colorado. The court issued the order in the case of United Fire & Casualty Company v. Boulder Plaza […]
