Effective October 1, 2022, Connecticut adopted new State Building, Fire Safety, and Fire Prevention codes.  The new codes include 12 international and national model codes.  The State Building Code applies to most buildings and other structures newly-constructed, altered, added to, or undergoing a change in use.  The new codes apply to projects for which a…

The American Arbitration Association (AAA) has revised its Commercial Arbitration Rules and Mediation Procedures, effective September 1, 2022. The goal of these revisions is to standardize longstanding AAA practices concerning confidentiality, consideration of consolidation/joinder motions, and civility. The amendments also further promote efficiency, reflect advances in technology, and include discussion on cybersecurity concerns.  The following…

An often-overlooked part of contract negotiations is the language included in the performance bond.  While the owner or contractor (bond obligee) requires a performance bond and pays for it, negotiating efforts are typically spent on the main contract language itself rather than the bond.  A common go-to performance bond form used in the construction industry…

The recent Connecticut Appellate Court decision in Electrical Contractors, Inc. v. 50 Morgan Hospitality Group, LLC, 211 Conn. App. 724 (2022), eliminated any remaining doubt regarding a subcontractor’s right to payment for work performed when the subcontract includes a “pay-if-paid” provision. A pay-if- paid provision that makes an owner’s payment to the general contractor (GC)…

The American Institute of Architects (AIA) Contract Documents program recently released a limited number of state-specific Sworn Construction Statements and Lien Waiver and Release forms for use on construction projects. At the same time, the AIA also released generic versions of the waiver and release forms for use in states without specific statutory requirements.

At…

Below is an excerpt of an article published in Construction Executive on August 9, 2022 authored by Megan R. Naughton, co-chair of Robinson+Cole’s Immigration Group. 

Although the visa options are limited, there are some that can be explored by construction companies in the United States, including the following.

H-1B

The H-1B visa category…

The purpose of a liquidated damages provision in a construction contract is to establish in advance a fair amount of compensation to the injured party for a breach of contract to avoid spending time and money fighting over uncertain actual damages after they occur.  Generally, to be enforceable, a liquidated damages provision must satisfy three…