When entering into a business deal, it’s always a good idea to put the terms in writing. For some business deals, it’s the law. For instance, the Indiana Home Improvement Contract Act (“HICA”) requires that construction contractors provide a written contract when the contractor is to perform a home improvement costing more than $150. The contract must contain...Read More

The local construction industry has come a long way since the economic challenges of 2008, but still leaves much to be desired in Southwestern Indiana. As builders continue to focus on their bottom lines for each project, price is usually what gets primary attention. However, one area likely to make the black ink turn red...Read More

With severe weather events becoming more frequent in the Midwest and the barrage of television advertisements for pre-fabricated and national chain storm shelter contractors, homeowners have become more interested in their homes offering protection from the dangers of tornadoes and excessive wind. This makes it more important than ever for builders to have a clear...Read More

We recently blogged in this space about a pair of Federal Claims decisions that sided with an owner and denied a design/build contractor’s (Metcalf Construction Company) $27,000,000 claim for increased construction costs. The main focus of these cases involved the duty of a design/build contractor to independently investigate soil conditions on a project. The trial...Read More

When parties to a construction project find themselves in a disagreement, there are several options to resolve the dispute. These include: (1) informal settlement discussions (often with “high level” executives); (2) turning the dispute over to an “initial decision maker” (often identified in the contract as the architect, project engineer or construction manager); or (3)...Read More

While typically an owner impliedly warrants the information, plans and specifications it provides to a contractor†, the decisions in two recent United States Court of Federal Claims cases (see Metcalf Constr. Co. v. United States, 102 Fed. Cl. 334 (2011) (Metcalf I), and Metcalf Constr. Co. v. United States, 107 Fed. Cl. 786 (2012) (Metcalf...Read More

This year, in an important decision for contractors, design professionals and owners, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit, which includes Indiana, upheld enforcement of a contractual limitation of liability clause, which resulted in the design professional’s liability being capped at $70,000, despite the owner’s claim that its damages were in excess of...Read More

A key area where builders leave money on the table, and often times get taken advantage of, is changes and additions to a home.  When the plans are being developed, owners believe they know exactly what they want in their home and the price, specifications, and contracts are prepared based on those desires and preferences....Read More

Liability insurance coverage for certain construction defects changed with the 2010 Indiana Supreme Court decision, Sheehan Construction Company, Inc., et al. v. Continental Casualty Company. In the Sheehan case, the Court reinterpreted an insurance company’s obligation to its builder-insureds under the builder’s commercial general liability policy with regard to work performed by subcontractors. Prior to this...Read More

For purposes of property taxes, builders who use their homes as “model residences” may qualify for a fifty percent (50%) deduction of the assessed value of the model residence. Indiana Code § 6-1.1-12.6-1 provides that a “model residence” means real property that consists of a single-family residence, single-family townhouse, or single-family condominium unit that has...Read More