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Fraud Claims Not Barred by Contractual Waiver: Tennessee Court Affirms Punitive Damages Award Against General Contractor
By James Daniel, John Mark Goodman
The Tennessee Court of Appeals has upheld a punitive damages award against general contractor The Weitz Company, finding that the subcontract’s general waiver of special damages did not bar recovery…
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Lien on Me, Washington, D.C.
By Lee-Ann C. Brown, John Mark Goodman
In our companion posts, we looked at the quirks that make Virginia's and Maryland's mechanic's lien laws unique. Cross the river again into Washington, D.C., and you land in a…
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Case Update: Federal Court Affirms $383M Jury Verdict for Michigan Utility in Pumped Storage Dispute
A federal judge in Michigan has affirmed a $383 million jury verdict against Toshiba for its work on the Ludington Pumped Storage Hydro plant. The case involves a project to overhaul…
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HKS Architects Liable for Defective Structural Designs on Hospital Project
A Florida federal judge has found architectural firm HKS liable for providing defective structural designs from its engineering subconsultant on a hospital project in Florida. The case involves expansion of an…
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Not So Cleaver: Why Merely Referencing a Proposal May Not Incorporate Its Terms
By W. Hunter Webb, John Mark Goodman
In construction contracts, proposals, drawings, studies, etc. are often incorporated by reference. A Nebraska federal court recently addressed what language is sufficient to accomplish such incorporation. In Cleaver Brooks Co.…
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No Victory for Separation of Powers: Supreme Court Allows White House Ballroom Construction to Proceed
By John Mark Goodman, Douglas L. Patin
The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that the White House Ballroom project can proceed, at least for now. As you may recall from our prior post, the D.C. Circuit Court of…
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No Games Allowed: Right to Arbitrate Waived by Filing Suit and Waiting to Request Arbitration
Many construction contracts these days include an arbitration provision. Those provisions generally provide that disputes between the parties will be resolved through private arbitration rather than litigation in the public…
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9th Circuit Continues Trend of Narrowing Bases to Oppose Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards
By Dustin Appel, Jennifer Morrison Ersin
On August 12, 2026, the 9th Circuit joined the D.C. Circuit in ruling that the doctrine of forum non conveniens does not apply to an action to confirm a foreign…
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10th Circuit Affirms Verdict for Engineering Firm in AECOM-Flatiron Dispute
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit has affirmed the jury verdict and judgment in favor of engineering firm AECOM Technical Services in its long-running dispute with the…
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The Duty for Insurance Companies to Defend Construction Disputes
Companies in the construction industry face the risk of disputes every day, and defending those disputes means incurring attorneys’ fees. While companies sometimes pay those attorneys’ fees out of pocket,…