Documentation can help minimize construction defect claims

Good, detailed documentation of your health history and past medical procedures helps your doctor to make accurate diagnoses. Accurate documentation also enables professors, students, historians, accountants, legislators and others do their jobs and keep others apprised of developments, changes and points of view. Detailed documentation can also help developers and general contractors minimize or even … Read moreDocumentation can help minimize construction defect claims

Part I: Potential defenses to construction defect claims

Those of us who have spent a few years in the Mid-Atlantic region know that our part of the country is as litigious as any other – sometimes even more so. People in one aspect or another of the construction industry – real estate developers, general contractors, subcontractors, designers and others – understand that litigation … Read morePart I: Potential defenses to construction defect claims

Part II: Potential defenses to construction defect claims

Regular readers of our Mid-Atlantic Civil Litigation Defense Firm blog know that in a recent post we described one of the most effective defenses available in construction defect litigation. Quite simply, it is to make clear to the court that the other party does not have the legal right to sue. In this second part … Read morePart II: Potential defenses to construction defect claims

Quisenberry v. Huntington Ingalls Incorporated – Virginia Supreme Court Recognizes a Duty for an Employer to Family Members of Employees in Take Home Asbestos Exposure Cases

In Quisenberry v. Huntington Ingalls Inc., the Virginia Supreme Court answered certified questions of law from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, and, in doing so, found that there is a legal duty in Virginia, imposed upon employers, owed to family members of its employees in take-home asbestos exposure cases.  … Read moreQuisenberry v. Huntington Ingalls Incorporated – Virginia Supreme Court Recognizes a Duty for an Employer to Family Members of Employees in Take Home Asbestos Exposure Cases

Estate of Concetta Schatz v. John Crane, Inc. – Maryland Intermediate Appellate Court Holds Maryland Imposes No Duty on a Manufacturer to Warn a Household Member of a Worker Who Used the Manufacturer’s Product

The case involved a mesothelioma claim brought by the estate of Concetta Schatz against John Crane, Inc. (hereinafter “JCI”) (other defendants had been sued but had been dismissed or had resolved before trial). The estate claimed that Mrs. Schatz developed mesothelioma as a result of washing her husband’s clothing.  Her husband, William Schatz, was employed as a … Read moreEstate of Concetta Schatz v. John Crane, Inc. – Maryland Intermediate Appellate Court Holds Maryland Imposes No Duty on a Manufacturer to Warn a Household Member of a Worker Who Used the Manufacturer’s Product

Part II: Unraveling a sky-high construction defect dispute

Regular readers of our blog know that we recently discussed some of the ongoing problems with San Francisco’s Millennium Tower. Two of the biggest problems: the 58-story residential scraper has sunk 17 inches in the past decade and the building is leaning 14 inches to the northwest. No one yet knows exactly why the blue-gray … Read morePart II: Unraveling a sky-high construction defect dispute

Part I: Unraveling a sky-high construction defect dispute

There is no doubt that the Millennium Tower is sinking and tilting. What is in doubt is who is responsible for the construction defect plaguing San Francisco’s blue-gray skyscraper. Since the primarily residential 58-story Millennium opened nearly a decade ago, it has sunk 17 inches and is leaning 14 inches to the northwest. It is … Read morePart I: Unraveling a sky-high construction defect dispute

Air & Liquid Systems v. DeVries: U.S. Supreme Court Hears Oral Argument on Bare Metal Defense Under Maritime Law

As the ultimate authority on general maritime law, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral argument today on a matter involving basic tort principles most often evaluated at the state court level. In Air & Liquid Systems v. DeVries, the parties presented argument on whether a manufacturer may be liable for injuries caused by a product … Read moreAir & Liquid Systems v. DeVries: U.S. Supreme Court Hears Oral Argument on Bare Metal Defense Under Maritime Law

Virginia Supreme Court Imposes Only Limited Duties on Owners for Short-Term Premises Rentals; Holds No Duty to Maintain a Safe Condition Applies to Areas Within the Renters’ Control

In an era of homeowners more frequently renting out their homes for short-term vacationers, the question of how to categorize the relationship between the homeowner and the renter has arisen. The Virginia Supreme Court recently evaluated that issue in Haynes-Garrett v. Dunn, No. 171055, 2018 Va. LEXIS 131 (Oct. 4, 2018), and held that, based … Read moreVirginia Supreme Court Imposes Only Limited Duties on Owners for Short-Term Premises Rentals; Holds No Duty to Maintain a Safe Condition Applies to Areas Within the Renters’ Control