What’s In a Name? Part II

Earlier, I reported on a case decided by the California Court of Appeals for the Third District, Ball v. Steadfast-BLK, 196 Cal.App.4th 694 (2011), in which the Court…

Public Entity Not Entitled to Recover Attorney’s Fees in Stop Notice Enforcement Action

One of the few statutory payment remedies available to subcontractors and others who provide labor, services, equipment and/or materials on public works projects is the stop…

Happy April 1st!

There are construction defects . . . and then there are construction defects . . .

General Contractor Which Retained Control Over Jobsite May be Liable for Injuries Sustained by Third Tier Subcontractor

Nearly 20 years ago the California Supreme Court decided Privette v. Superior Court, 5 Cal.4th 689 (1993), in which it held that a property owner who…

Owner’s Insurance Broker Had No Duty to Inform Insured Subcontractor of Insolvency of Insurance Company

Construction projects can be fraught with risk whether it be design or construction defects, injuries to laborers or third parties or even damage to or destruction…

Joint Labor Enforcement Task Force Targets Underground Economy

The California Contractors State License Board (“CSLB”) announced today that a joint inter-agency task force, the Labor Enforcement Task Force (“LETF”), has been formed to crack…

Design Professional Liens: Gone But Not Forgotten

As I’ve mentioned in a few of my posts, there will be a number of changes to California’s mechanic’s lien laws beginning July 1, 2012. Among…

Diverse and Small Business Contracting with Public Entities Forum

Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E), as part of the California Public Utilities Commission’s Joint Utilities Initiative, will be hosting a free forum on how to…

Disability Access Litigation in California

On February 15, 2012, I will be presenting a seminar to the National Retail Tenants Association on disability access litigation in California. These lawsuits, brought under…

California’s 425 Redevelopment Agencies Close Their Doors Today

At midnight last night, California’s 425 redevelopment agencies closed their doors as a result of legislation enacted this past year (AB 26) which eliminated the state’s…

Lessons in Bankruptcy

It’s been a rough few years in the construction industry, not only for contractors, but for owners as well. Not only have many contractors had to…

CSLB Issues First LLC License, But Expect Delays

Over the past several months I have been providing updates about the California Contractors State License Board’s (“CSLB”) implementation of legislation enacted in 2010 which finally…