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Practice Area: Architects and Engineers

Alabama Enacts New Design Professional Statute That Prohibits Certain Contract Provisions And Establishes A Single Standard Of Care For Alabama Design Professionals

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On April 29, 2021, Alabama Governor Kay Ivey signed a new law that prohibits certain type indemnification provisions in professional services contracts and establishes a single standard of care for Alabama design professionals for Alabama projects governed by Alabama law. The new law, titled “Contract requirements for professional services of design professionals,” went into effect…
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Architect’s Contract To Observe Construction Did Not Create Duty To Ensure That Plumbing Work Complied With Design Plans

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In Chicago Ambulatory Surgery Associates, Inc. v. Restore Construction, Inc., 2021 WL 4168597 (Ill. App. Sept. 14, 2021), an Illinois court held an architect that contracted to provide design drawings and make regular site visits did not also undertake a duty to inspect plumbing work for compliance with those drawings. The owner hired Restore Construction,…
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Who Can Offer A Certificate Of Merit Against A Design Professional In Texas

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In Barrientos v. Jacobs Engineering Group, Inc., No. 13-20-00092-CV, 2021 WL 3411869 (Tex. App. Aug. 5, 2021), the Court of Appeals of Texas, Corpus Christi-Edinburg held that Texas law mandates that a design professional expert offering opinions against another design professional must be licensed or registered in Texas. On March 4, 2019, Barrientos filed a…
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Tennessee Appellate Court Rules Statute Of Limitations And Repose Defenses In Construction Cases Should Be Submitted To The Jury When Fraudulent Concealment Or Equitable Estoppel Is At Issue

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In Joseph Riccardi v. Carl Little Construction Co., Inc., et al., 2021 WL 3137251 (Tenn. App. July 26, 2021), a Tennessee Appellate Court held that the statute of limitations and statute of repose defenses should be submitted to the jury when fraudulent concealment or equitable estoppel is at issue, even if there is no genuine…
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When Is An Architect Required To Notify Its Insurer

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In RLI Insurance Company v. Architrave, Inc., 2021 WL 1863259 (D.S.C. May 7, 2021), a federal court in South Carolina held that a factual issue remained as to when an architect was required to put its insurer on notice of a potential claim. Bobbitt Design Build (“Bobbitt”) was hired by Mount Moriah Missionary Baptist Church,…
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Engineer’s Contractual Indemnity Claim Against Contractor Dismissed, As Indemnification Agreement Excluded Claims For Damages To The Work Itself

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In County of Saratoga v. Delaware Engineering, D.P.C., 189 A.D.3d 1926, 139 N.Y.S.3d 381 (3d Dept 2020), the New York Supreme Court Appellate Division held that an engineer’s contractual indemnity claim against the contractor was due to be dismissed, as the indemnity provision unambiguously and expressly excluded claims for damage to the “work itself.” In…
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Texas Appellate Court Reaffirms Holding That Certificate Of Merit Addressing Individual Engineer’s Alleged Negligence Satisfies Requirements As To The Employer

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In Carlson, Brigance & Doering, Inc. v. Compton, 2020 WL 7233612 (Tex. App. Dec 8, 2020) the Court of Appeals of Texas held that a Certificate of Merit addressing the alleged negligence of an individual engineer does not have to separately address the employer’s alleged negligence arising out of the same acts or omissions.  Forestar…
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Massachusetts Supreme Court Rules That Statute Of Repose For Construction And Design Defect In Multi-Building Project Ran When Each Building Was Substantially Completed

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In D’Allessandro v. Lennar Hingham Holdings, LLC, 2020 WL 6438937 (Mass. Nov. 3, 2020), the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court held the statute of repose governing the claims for design and construction defects for a multi-building condominium project began to run when each building was opened for its intended use or was substantially completed, not when…
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North Carolina Appellate Court Rules The Licensure Defense Does Not Bar Contractor’s Negligence Claims Against Design Professionals

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In Wright Construction Services, Inc.v. The Hard Art Studio, PLLC, 2020 WL 7906704 (N.C. App. Dec. 31, 2020), a North Carolina appellate court held that the “licensure defense,” which prevents a builder that is unlicensed at the start of a project from recovering in a breach of contract claim, does not apply to negligence claims…
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