May, 2015 | Construction Law Authority

Insurance Considerations post-Baltimore

May 27, 2015

Article, Disaster Preparation and Recovery, Insurance, Litigation

Let me start with the caveat that I am not getting into the political or race issues at the heart of recent events in Baltimore. However, from the point-of-view of someone working in construction and insurance law, the insurance and rebuilding questions created by the protests/riots in these cities is of great interest. Although the specific article here references insurance issues and struggles to rebuild in Maryland, similar concerns and analyses would apply anywhere that such events take place. As the article from Insurance Business America notes, many small businesses have been unable to reopen post damage as they are caught in a web of what is and is not covered under their applicable policies. Many questions loom: does the property insurance policy afford coverage; what about the Business Interruption policy; what are the applicable deductibles? As is typical of any insurance coverage the devil is in the details of the specific...

Citizens Property Insurance Not Liable for First Party Bad Faith Claims

May 15, 2015

Sanjay Kurian

Cases, Disaster Preparation and Recovery, Hurricane, Insurance, Litigation

Thursday, the Florida Supreme Court issued its opinion in Citizens Property Insurance Corp., v. Perdido Sun Condominium Association, Inc., considering the issue as to whether Citizens Property Insurance could be liable for First Party Bad Faith Claims. The Supreme Court determined that Citizens was not liable for such claims and that no exception for such claims existed from Citizens statutory immunity. This places Citizens in a different position, in regard to insureds, than other insurance carriers who may be offering similar property policies. The issue in was whether the Legislature intended CitizensProperty Insurance Corporation, a state-created entity that provides property insurance, to be liable for statutory first-party bad faith claims as an exception to its statutory immunity from suit. The issue had come before the Supreme Court from the First District's decision in Perdido Sun Condominium Ass’n v. Citizens Property Insurance Corp., 129 So. 3d 1210 (Fla. 1st DCA 2014), which...

Preparing for the 2015 Hurricane Season

May 13, 2015

Sanjay Kurian

Disaster Preparation and Recovery, Hurricane, Insurance, News

The Atlantic hurricane season is defined as running from June 1 through November 30. No one bothered to tell that to Tropical Storm Ana which hit South Carolina over the weekend. The Ana had sustained winds of 45 mph at landfall and brought anywhere between 2"-6" of rain depending on location. The early start of the hurricane season does not mean that we will necessarily have more hurricanes or what the severity of those hurricanes will be. However, it is always good to be prepared and plan ahead. The next few weeks will be important to finalize, or even start, our personal and business hurricane preparedness plans. Even if you do not have one yet there is still time to prepare. Below is a 12-point Hurricane Preparedness Checklist for condominium and homeowner associations to prepare for the 2015 hurricane season: 1. Disaster Plan – If you have a disaster plan be ready...

New Case: Cypress Fairway v. Bergeron Construction (Statute of Repose)

May 11, 2015

Sanjay Kurian

Cases, Construction Defects, Litigation

Interesting opinion issued last week by the Florida's Fifth District Court of Appeal on the statute of repose. The opinion can be found here. It is not yet final. The Cypress Fairway Condominium was a conversion condominium. The suit was brought by the Association "individually" and also as assignee of claims by the general contractor. Suit was filed against parties involved in the original construction and also the conversion. Suit was filed on February 2, 2011. There is no reference to when the certificate of occupancy was issued. Rather, the last non-settling defendant argued that the statute of repose period began when application for final payment was made on January 31, 2001, which was they argued was the completion date of construction. The Association argued that the repose period did not begin until February 2, 2001, when final payment was actually made. The trial court granted summary judgment to the defendant on...