Analyzes an Illinois trial court decision that held a subcontractor liable for breach of contract but in which the jury returned damages of only $1 due to insufficient evidence of the amount of damages.
Summarizes an Illinois Appellate Court ruling reenforcing that merely attempting to reframe a design defect claim as a negligent maintenance one won’t expand the time limit inherent in the statute of repose for construction projects.
Analyzes Illinois appellate court ruling in Neisendorf v. Abbey Paving & Sealcoating on a question of whether contract language calling for a general right to stop work established a duty of care under Sections 414 and 343 of the Restatement.
Illustrates how construction companies in Illinois who utilize borrowed employers may be entitled to protections under the Workers’ Compensation Act.
Examines why snow/ice removal contractors need to re-evaluate contracts with property owners based on appellate court ruling on liability to third parties
From West Coast to East Coast, states have rushed to issue orders, rules, and regulations to address the new coronavirus pandemic, including, in part, the states’ determinations of what construction work/services are “essential.” Those definitions of “essential” construction activities vary greatly; some states adopted severe restrictions on construction (allowing only emergency repairs), while others issued few restrictions (leaving construction relatively unaffected).
Despite the states’ attempts to maintain “essential” construction ...
In Woods v. Amazon.com LLC and Johnson v. Amazon.com LLC, 2019 WL 2504093 (2019) & 2019 WL 2509122 (2019), respectively, two individuals, Andrew Woods and Michael Johnson (“Plaintiffs”) brought separate, but related personal injury actions against Amazon.com, LLC (“Amazon”), Duke Realty, LP (“Duke”) and Steel King Industries, Inc. (“Steel King”) (collectively, the “Defendants”). Defendants brought third-party contribution claims against Plaintiffs’ employer, Lakeside Rack Installer, Inc. (“Lakeside”).
Both Plaintiffs suffered serious ...
The Illinois Supreme Court recently decided Sienna Court Condominium Ass'n v. Champion Aluminum Corp., 2018 IL 122022 (December 28, 2018). The case raised a rather straightforward question: May the purchaser of a newly constructed home assert a claim for breach of an implied warranty of habitability against a subcontractor who had no contractual relationship with the purchaser? The Court held that the purchaser could not assert such a cause of action, regardless of the general contractor's insolvency or the unavailability of recourse against the general contractor. This ruling ...
In a recent decision, the Illinois Appellate Court, Third District, considered what should and should not be considered by a trial court when making a determination on a motion to stay a declaratory judgment action on insurance coverage pending resolution of the underlying litigation. Pekin Insurance Company v. Johnson-Downs Construction, Inc., 2017 IL App (3d) 160601. The underlying suit in Johnson-Downs concerned an injured employee of a subcontractor who sued the general contractor. Originally, the plaintiff employee alleged negligence and premises liability theories ...
It is commonplace in construction projects for a contractor to require its subcontractors to purchase liability insurance that protects against certain claims and that includes the contractor as an additional insured. The problem is that many times the policy that the subcontractor purchases does not on its face meet the requirements set forth in the written agreement between the contractor and subcontractor. For example, the construction agreement may require liability insurance with higher limits of liability than that actually provided by the subcontractor’s policy, or ...
