Thoughts on construction law from Christopher G. Hill, Virginia construction lawyer, LEED AP, mediator, and member of the Virginia Legal Elite in Construction Law

Category Archives: Construction Law

Be Careful with Arbitration Clauses in Construction Contracts

The Fairfax County Circuit Court has done it again. In Comer, et. al v. Goudie, et. al., CL 2008-2110 (December 11, 2008), the Fairfax Court considered the following: The Plaintiffs in the three suits decided by the Court entered into contracts with Timberline Design and Build, Inc. (“Timberline”) for the construction of their homes. The

Musings and Construction Featured in the Virginia Lawyer February Issue

Thanks to Virginia Lawyer, the magazine of the Virginia State Bar for its feature on construction law and in particular the Construction Law and Public Contracts Section.  The set of features in this month’s issue (check it out through the link above) highlight construction law and attorneys through articles covering topics from ADR to bankruptcy.

Raising Your BIM Fluency

For this week’s Guest Post Friday here at Construction Law Musings, we welcome newcomer Lauren McLaughlin.  For over a decade, Lauren has devoted her law practice to representing professionals in the construction industry.  When she is not drafting contracts, negotiating change orders, litigating trials, or doing site visits as project counsel, she speaks at a

No Recoupment Defense to Supplier’s Miller Act Claim

We’re back on the Miller Act train here at Musings.  Recently, the Alexandria, VA Federal District Court revisited the issue of whether the failure of a subcontractor to pay its supplier provides a general contractor and its surety with a defense to a Federal Miller Act bond claim.  The short answer is “No.” In U.S.

Musings on Why I Mediate

This week, I’ve decided to jump off the legislative/mechanic’s lien train and get back to thoughts on one of, if not my number one, favorite dispute resolution process: mediation. As those of you who read Musings regularly know, I became certified as a mediator by the Virginia Supreme Court last year.  I went through this