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

When is Forum Selection in a Construction Contract Enforceable?

If there is one mantra that is repeated often here at Construction Law Musings, it is that your construction contract will be strictly construed and Virginia Courts will enforce the provisions as written.  This rule includes forum selection clauses.  For those that aren’t attorneys, this means that absent a statute to the contrary, the parties

When is an Indemnification Provision Unenforceable?

Virginia Code Sec. 11-4.1 makes indemnification provisions in construction contracts that are so broad as to indemnify the indemnitee from its own negligence unenforceable.  Of course, this begs the question as to what language of indemnification provisions make them unenforceable. A case from the City of Chesapeake Virginia Circuit Court examined this question.  In Wasa

Addenda to Construction Contracts Can Be an Issue

Originally posted 2016-03-02 15:25:38. We’ve all been there.  Your client either has a well drafted standard subcontract (with any luck in consultation with an experienced construction attorney) that it presents to its subcontractors and suppliers or your client is presented with a construction contract that has some provisions that it would prefer were either different

Building the Secondary Market for Reclaimed Building Materials

Originally posted 2011-07-22 16:00:06. For this week’s guest post Friday, Musings welcomes Mark Rabkin of Deconstruction Management, Inc., the first, dedicated, for-profit deconstruction management firm in the country.  Based in Northeast Ohio, it through all stages of building removal from property acquisition to deconstruction to recycling and architectural salvage. With 10 years of professional experience

Unjust Enrichment and Express Contract Don’t Mix

I am a huge fan of clearly written construction contracts.  Virginia state and federal courts will interpret contract provisions as written and will seek to enforce all of those terms where possible.  Where the contract is ambiguous, we construction attorneys make money and the courts are forced to make decisions that the parties may not