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Mealey's Construction Defects

  • May 25, 2023

    Penthouse Owner May Owe Duty To Fellow Resident Who Says Renovation Caused Damages

    NEW YORK — Genuine issues of material fact exist as to whether a penthouse owner owed a duty to a fellow resident-shareholder whose apartment unit, located one floor below the penthouse, was allegedly damaged by renovations to the penthouse, a New York justice held in granting and denying summary judgment to multiple parties to the action.

  • May 24, 2023

    Fla. Federal Judge Further Extends Stay For Negotiations In Brazilian Plywood Case

    FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — A Florida federal judge granted an unopposed motion for an extension of an administrative stay filed by a coalition of American plywood manufacturers that sought more time to negotiate the settlement of claims it brought against a plywood certifying agency for allegedly certifying substandard Brazilian structural plywood as meeting U.S. standards.

  • May 23, 2023

    Roofing Contractor Deficiently Responded To Interrogatories, Magistrate Judge Finds

    FORT MYERS, Fla. — A roofing contractor inadequately responded to interrogatories by filing objections and substantive answers to questions from a manufacturer of roofing products, a Florida federal magistrate judge found in granting the manufacturer’s motion to compel and ordering the contractor to file new responses to the interrogatories and a new computation of the alleged damages it incurred from the manufacturer’s sprayable roofing projects.

  • May 19, 2023

    Claims Of Water Intrusion At New Building Are Time-Barred, Texas Panel Says

    HOUSTON — A property owner’s claims arising from water leaks at a newly constructed retail building are barred by the statute of limitations because the owner failed to file the clams within four years and nothing tolled the applicable limitations period, a Texas panel found May 18 in affirming a trial court’s ruling.

  • May 18, 2023

    Calif. Panel Affirms Dismissal Of Window Installation Claims As Time-Barred

    SAN FRANCISCO — A homeowner’s claims that a contractor failed to properly install custom windows and doors were time-barred because the repairs to the windows and doors did not toll the applicable statute of limitations, a California panel found in affirming a trial court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of the contractor.

  • May 18, 2023

    After Parties Announce Settlement, Alabama Federal Judge Dismisses Stucco Dispute

    MOBILE, Ala. — Upon receiving notification of the parties’ settlement, an Alabama federal dismissed with prejudice a case in which a homeowner alleged that various parties contributed to the installation of defective stucco products during the construction of a new home.

  • May 16, 2023

    Delaware Judge: Issues Of Fact Exist Regarding Faulty Roofing Installation

    WILMINGTON, Del. — Two roofing contractors are not entitled to summary judgment on breach of contract and negligence claims brought against them by a condominium association because there are questions of fact as to whether falling shingles were sufficient to put the association on notice of its claims, a Delaware judge held in denying the contractors’ motion for summary judgment based on the statute of limitations.

  • May 16, 2023

    Texas High Court: Subsequent Home Purchaser Must Arbitrate Mold Claims

    AUSTIN, Texas — The Texas Supreme Court found that a subsequent purchaser of a home that allegedly suffers from mold damage is required to arbitrate against the home’s builder because the subsequent purchaser’s implied warranty claims arise from the contract for the home’s original sale, which contained an arbitration agreement.

  • May 15, 2023

    Without Established Standard Of Care, Claims Against Architect Are Dismissed

    TOMS RIVER, N.J. — Professional negligence claims brought by two homeowners against an architectural firm that inspected a newly built foundation that was later deemed to be unsafe were dismissed by a New Jersey court because the homeowners’ expert failed to establish a proper standard of care to support the claims.

  • May 15, 2023

    Texas Panel: Evidence Doesn’t Support Homeowner’s Improper Repair Counterclaims

    BEAUMONT, Texas — A homeowner who refused to pay a contractor for repairs made to his home in the wake of Hurricane Harvey failed to support his counterclaims for substandard repair against the contractor with sufficient evidence, a Texas appellate court panel found in reversing and remanding a trial court’s judgment in favor of the homeowner.

  • May 12, 2023

    In Landslide Case, Property Developers Seek Dismissal Of Claims Under Prior Order

    PITTSBURGH — In a motion to amend, a property development company and one of its partners request that a ruling on summary judgment in which a Pennsylvania federal judge dismissed several claims arising from a landslide that damaged three new homes under the statute of repose be applied to them under the law of the case doctrine.

  • May 11, 2023

    In Failed Retaining Wall Dispute, Federal Judge Denies Motion For Reconsideration

    BALTIMORE — A property owner who sought reconsideration of an order denying summary judgment for negligence claims brought by the purchaser of the property over the construction of a retaining wall failed to present new arguments or evidence regarding the claims, a Maryland federal judge found in denying reconsideration.

  • May 11, 2023

    Calif. Federal Judge: Builder Failed To Prove Damages In Default Judgment Motion

    LOS ANGELES — In denying two separate motions for default judgment filed by a builder against subcontractors that failed to respond to pleadings arising from the alleged defective construction of a youth center, a California federal judge found that the builder failed to provide evidence of its alleged damages.

  • May 10, 2023

    Ky. Panel: Buyers Admitted Arbitration Provision In Home Warranty Was Enforceable

    FRANKFORT, Ky. — A Kentucky appellate court panel overturned a trial court’s finding that an arbitration provision in a warranty for structural home defects was unenforceable because in their complaint against the home warranty administrator, the homeowners filed a demand for arbitration, which served as a judicial admission that the provision was enforceable.

  • May 09, 2023

    Before High Court, Homeowners Argue That Builder Twists State Supreme Court Ruling

    WASHINGTON, D.C. — A homebuilder mischaracterizes a South Carolina Supreme Court ruling in an attempt to show that the state high court was biased against arbitration agreements in its petition for writ of certiorari filed in the U.S. Supreme Court, a group of homeowners who sued the builder for allegedly defective construction of their new homes argued in their brief in opposition to the petition.

  • May 05, 2023

    Property Owner Says Roofing Manufacturer Negligently Oversaw Installation Of Products

    NEW ORLEANS — In their response to a motion to dismiss filed by a roofing manufacturer, a property owner and an operator of a nursing home argue that their negligence claim is not barred by the Louisiana Products Liability Act (LPLA) because the manufacturer’s own employees negligently oversaw the installation of roofing products that caused damage to the property during Hurricane Ida.

  • May 03, 2023

    Michigan Federal Judge: Owner Accepted Home By Moving In, Despite Alleged Defects

    FLINT, Mich. — By moving into a new home that allegedly suffered from defects, a homeowner accepted the home as completed and cannot assert a counterclaim for breach of contract against the builder of the residence, a Michigan federal judge held in granting summary judgment in favor of the builder on the homeowner’s counterclaims.

  • May 03, 2023

    Connecticut Judge Grants Prejudgment Remedy For Failed HVAC System Installation

    STAMFORD, Conn. — A Connecticut judge found that the evidence presented at a hearing established probable cause that judgment would be entered in favor of a homeowner who alleged that a contractor and its principal failed to properly install a heating, ventilating and air conditioning (HVAC) system in her home.

  • May 02, 2023

    Faulty Home Construction Case Stayed Pending Arbitration In Maryland Federal Court

    BALTIMORE — After a group of homeowners agreed in their response to a developer’s motion to compel arbitration that the remaining construction defects claims between the parties should be arbitrated, a Maryland federal judge on May 1 granted the developer’s motion as well as the homeowners’ request to stay the case instead of dismissing it.

  • May 02, 2023

    Summary Judgment Granted In Dispute Over Pa. Homes Damaged By Landslide

    PITTSBURGH — Disputes of material fact exist only regarding breach of contract and negligence claims brought by a homebuilder against two developers who worked on a housing development in which three homes were damaged by a landslide, a Pennsylvania federal judge found in granting partial summary judgment to the two developers while granting complete summary judgment to eight other parties involved with the project who were ultimately found not responsible for the landslide.