By Stephen A. Dwyer, Associate Attorney A recent case from the Texas supreme court reaffirmed and clarified a general contractor’s liability to an independent contractor’s negligence claims called JLB Builders, L.L.C. v. Hernandez. The case reaffirmed the general rule in Texas when analyzing a negligence claim by an independent [...]
By Francis D. McWilliams, Senior Associate Attorney Under normal circumstances, the Texas House of Representatives meets for session at noon on the second Tuesday in January of odd numbered years through the last week of May. The governor may call additional “special sessions” that can last up to thirty [...]
By Anam R. Fazli, Associate Attorney In Texas, valid mechanic’s liens allow contractors to enforce their right to payment against the underlying property. A mechanic’s lien is valid if it complies with Chapter 53 of the Texas Property Code, Subchapter C. Subchapter C encompasses claim notice requirements and additional [...]
By Stephen A. Dwyer, Associate Attorney In any legal dispute, one of the first things an attorney must do is determine whether the claimant has the right to sue the defendant. In other words, the claimant must have both standing and capacity. While this is a basic principle, practitioners [...]
By Anam R. Fazli, Associate Attorney In October 2020, the Houston First Court of Appeals affirmed the lower court’s ruling that parents whose claims were brought on behalf of their minor children against a homebuilder accused of construction defects that caused mold growth are not subject to arbitration because [...]
By Bryce C. Reback, Attorney* The construction industry is one that unsurprisingly is ever changing. Whether it be the laws governing the erection of new structures, or a sub-contractors rights under a contract, the industry has always been one to adapt. This is even more true as it pertains [...]
By Francis D. McWilliams IV, Senior Associate Rolling power outages stemming from freezing weather conditions have paralyzed Houston and much of Texas. As of February 18th, approximately 511,000 homes and businesses are still without electricity. Earlier in the week approximately three million homes and businesses were affected. The weather [...]
By Francis D. McWilliams IV, Senior Associate Introduction This too shall pass. The first round of vaccinations to Covid-19 currently rolling out, bringing with them a cautious optimism among the legal community, and the public at large, that things may in the foreseeable future return to the way they [...]
By Bryce C. Reback, Attorney* The construction project hierarchy is familiar and well established. The owner hires the general contractor, and in turn the contractor hires subcontractors. In the unfortunate event that a legally actionable incident occurs there is plenty of settled law as to who can be held [...]
By Francis D. McWilliams IV, Senior Associate Due to the global pandemic and recent spike in COVID-19 cases, it’s anyone’s guess when Texas jury trials will resume. Arbitration, however, is moving forward virtually thanks to the array of virtual platforms available to the American Arbitration Association (“AAA”). I recently [...]