Mealey's Construction Defects : Mealey's : Legal News & Analysis

Mealey's Construction Defects

April 24, 2023
Builder Appeals Judgment Awarding Costs And Fees To Homeowners To 3rd Circuit

PITTSBURGH — A homebuilder found by a jury to have engaged in fraudulent or deceptive conduct while defectively constructing a new home has appealed a Pennsylvania federal judge’s decision to award two homeowners attorney fees, expert fees and other costs under the Pennsylvania Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law (UTPCPL) to the Third Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals.
April 21, 2023
Roofing Company Seeks Dismissal Of Negligence Claim, Says Liability Theories Fail

NEW ORLEANS — In response to an amended complaint filed by a property owner and an operator of a nursing home who allege that a roofing manufacturer was vicariously liable for damage caused to property during Hurricane Ida, the manufacturer moved to dismiss the negligence claim, arguing that the Louisiana Products Liability Act (LPLA) subsumes the theories of liability cited by the plaintiffs.
April 20, 2023
Parties Exchange Briefs In Homeowners’ Appeal Of Dismissal Of Mold Claims

WASHINGTON, D.C. — A homeowner and a builder submitted their briefs regarding the exclusion of the homeowners’ expert witness material to the District of Columbia Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in the homeowner’s appeal of a trial court’s partial granting of both a motion in limine and a motion to strike her expert witness material in addition to its granting summary judgment in favor of the builder on claims arising from damage to a newly built home allegedly caused by a leaking shower that led to toxic mold growth.
April 19, 2023
Pa. Supreme Court Won’t Hear Homebuilders’ Appeal Of Document Production Issue

HARRISBURG, Pa. — In an April 18 per curiam order, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court denied a homebuilder’s petition to appeal an appellate court opinion upholding a trial court’s finding that the builder’s spreadsheets, containing lists of customers who complained of water intrusion in their homes, were not privileged or protected attorney work product because the documents were factual in nature and prepared by the companies’ operations department, not their legal counsel.
April 18, 2023
N.Y. Justice Dismisses Several Claims In Home Renovation Dispute As Duplicative

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. — In partly granting motions to dismiss claims of defective construction and architectural planning brought by a homeowner against an architect and a general contractor plus his company, which worked on renovations and an extension to a home, a New York justice held that many of the claims, including breach of the covenant of good faith and fair dealing and breach of material representation, were duplicative of breach of contract claims, which were allowed to continue.
April 17, 2023
In Chinese Drywall Case, Florida Federal Judge Says Punitive Damages May Apply

FORT MYERS, Fla. — A homeowner may be entitled to punitive damages if he can show that a previous punitive damages award against a manufacturer of defective Chinese drywall, which was used in his home, was insufficient to punish the manufacturer’s behavior, a Florida federal judge found April 14 in partly adopting a magistrate judge’s report and recommendation interpreting a Florida statute that prohibits successive punitive damages awards.
April 13, 2023
Connecticut Judge: Construction And Later Renovation Of Walkway Was 1 Transaction

BRIDGEPORT, Conn. — The original construction of an elevated walkway in a condominium complex, designed by an architect and his firm, was the same transaction or occurrence as renovations to fix the walkway that ultimately made water accumulation problems worse, a Connecticut judge found in denying the architect and firm’s motions to strike negligence claims brought against them by the condominium association and apportionment claims brought by the builders that designed and performed the renovation.
April 13, 2023
In Home Water Damage Case, Pa. Judge Denies Petition To Vacate Arbitration Ruling

ALLENTOWN, Pa. — Two homeowners were not denied their right to an evidentiary hearing in an arbitration proceeding because they agreed to be bound by a scheduling order that allowed for their claims to be dismissed by a dispositive motion, a Pennsylvania judge found in denying the homeowners’ petition to vacate an arbitration ruling that granted the homebuilder’s motion to dismiss the homeowners’ claims of water damage to the stucco of their home.
April 13, 2023
Reconsideration Sought For Dismissal Of Claims Over Design Of Miami Bridge

MIAMI — A joint venture seeks reconsideration of an order in which a Florida federal judge found that negligence claims brought by the joint venture against an engineer and his firm for the alleged negligent design of an $800 million bridge in Miami are barred by the statute of limitations.
April 05, 2023
Kansas Federal Judge: Expert Rebuttal Report Is Proper In Faulty Roofing Dispute

KANSAS CITY, Kan. — The expert rebuttal report of a condominium property and three property owners should not be stricken because the challenged portions of the report contain proper testimony that responds to the expert reports offered by a shingles manufacturer that allegedly failed to disclose the problems related to its defective shingles and failed to compensate property owners injured by the alleged defects, a Kansas federal judge found in denying the manufacturer’s motion to strike the rebuttal report.
April 05, 2023
Federal Judge Dismisses Negligence Claims For Design Of Miami’s Signature Bridge

MIAMI — A Florida federal judge dismissed claims of negligence and gross negligence brought by a joint venture against an engineering firm and one of its engineers for the alleged negligent design of an $800 million bridge in Miami, finding that the independent tort doctrine and the statute of limitations barred the claims.
April 04, 2023
In Brazilian Plywood Case, Fla. Federal Judge Extends Stay To Allow Negotiations

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — In an April 3 paperless order, a Florida federal judge granted a joint motion for an extension of an administrative stay filed by a coalition of American plywood manufacturers and a plywood certifying agency to allow the parties to negotiate the settlement of claims that the agency is certifying substandard Brazilian plywood as meeting U.S. standards.
April 04, 2023
In Leaking Home Dispute, Illinois Panel Reduces And Vacates Damages

CHICAGO — An Illinois panel reduced compensatory damages and vacated punitive damages awarded to a homeowner for the defective construction of a third-floor addition to his home and a breezeway because the trial court used the wrong calculation for compensatory damages and the homeowner did not have an actionable claim under the Illinois Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act (ICFA).
April 04, 2023
La. Federal Judge Partially Dismisses Manufactured Home Claims For Lack Of Notice

SHREVEPORT, La. — Under Louisiana’s New Modular and Manufactured Home Warranty Act (MHWA), a homeowner was required to provide notice to a state commission before bringing claims based on alleged construction defects to court, a Louisiana federal judge determined in partially granting the homebuilder’s motion to dismiss the claims under the law.
April 04, 2023
Texas Panel: Homeowners Failed To Show New Wood Flooring Led To Mold Growth

HOUSTON — Two homeowners who alleged that improperly installed flooring caused mold growth failed to present sufficient evidence that showed that the installation was the cause of the growth, a majority of a split Texas panel found in partially affirming a trial court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of a lumber retailing company and the subcontractor it hired to install the floors.
April 03, 2023
Magistrate Judge Says Subcontractor Cannot Arbitrate Claims In Roofing Dispute

HAMMOND, Ind. — An Indiana federal magistrate judge denied a subcontractor’s motion to compel arbitration of third-party claims for indemnification and breach of contract filed by the general contractor of a housing development, finding that the language of the contract did not grant the subcontractor the right to initiate arbitration proceedings.
April 03, 2023
California Panel Denies Rehearing Of Standing Ruling In Water Intrusion Case

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — In a modified opinion, a California appellate panel denied a homeowner’s association’s (HOA) petition for rehearing of a ruling in which the panel determined the association had standing to assert construction defects claims for allegedly defective common areas, might have standing for damage to the individual owners’ units and did not have standing for claims brought under California’s Right to Repair Act.
March 31, 2023
Calif. Panel: Appeal Is Improper Means To Challenge Settlement Of Window Claims

SAN FRANCISCO — A trial court’s determination that a settlement between a homeowners’ association and the manufacturer of window and door products was made in good faith is not appealable because the only method to challenge such a determination is through a petition for a writ of mandate, a California appeals court panel held in dismissing the appeal filed by the housing project’s developer and general contractor, who was alleged to have improperly installed the windows on the project.
March 30, 2023
Conn. Judge Grants Homeowners $724,000 Prejudgment Award In Water Instruction Case

STAMFORD, Conn. — Two homeowners who purchased a new condominium that suffered from water intrusion are entitled to a total prejudgment award of $724,379.59 because they showed probable cause of success on some of their construction defects claims against the general contractor who built the condominium and the vendor who sold the home, a Connecticut judge found in granting the homeowners’ petition for a prejudgment award.
March 30, 2023
High Court Extends Time To Respond To Petition In New Home Construction Dispute

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court has extended the time homeowners and subcontractors have to respond to a petition for writ of certiorari filed by a homebuilder that was sued for allegedly defective construction of new homes and now asks the high court to review a South Carolina Supreme Court ruling to determine whether state courts can apply presumptions disfavoring arbitration agreements in homebuying contracts.
March 30, 2023
In Home Renovation Dispute, Texas Panel Reverses Jury’s Damages Verdict

AMARILLO, Texas — Two siblings are not entitled to $27,150 in damages or $6,000 in legal fees awarded to them by a jury on their claims arising from defective home renovation because the evidence did not support the damage theories that the siblings invoked, a Texas panel found in partially reversing a trial court’s judgment entering the damages verdict against two renovators.
March 29, 2023
Idaho High Court: Builder’s Landslide Damages Claims Are Time-Barred

BOISE, Idaho — In rejecting a “novel” economic loss doctrine argument from a homebuilder who brought professional negligence claims against an engineering firm and an architecture firm, the Idaho Supreme Court unanimously determined, in two separate decisions, that the statute of limitations barred the builder’s claims because they were brought two years after a landslide damaged a home that was under construction.
March 28, 2023
HOA Appeals Reduction Of Negligent Construction Verdict To Delaware High Court

WILMINGTON, Del. — A homeowners association appealed to the Delaware Supreme Court a trial court judge’s decision to reduce from $12.9 million to $8.3 million a jury verdict for damages caused by a builder’s negligent construction of parts of condominium units the judge found to be excessive and influenced by improper testimony regarding inflation and additional costs caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
March 28, 2023
Evidence Excluded, Summary Judgment And Reconsideration Denied In Drywall Dispute

NEW ORLEANS — In granting two property owners’ motion in limine, denying a manufacturer of defective Chinese drywall’s motion in limine and denying both parties motions for partial summary judgment, a Louisiana federal judge excluded evidence supporting the homeowners’ breach of express warranty claim and evidence of prior liability judgments against the manufacturer whose drywall allegedly damaged the owners’ properties before also denying the owners’ motion for reconsideration of an order concerning additional expert disclosure.
March 27, 2023
Texas Panel: Mold Claims Must Be Arbitrated On Home Purchase Contract’s Terms

HOUSTON — A trial court erred by ordering the second owners of a home and a homebuilder to arbitrate defective construction claims before an alternative arbitrator because the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) requires courts to enforce arbitration agreements based on their original terms, a Texas panel found in reversing the trial court’s decision.