Must a subcontractor’s claim of lien identify the contractor in order to be valid? In the recent case of Robertson v. Ridge Environmental, LLC, the Court of Appeals of Georgia held that a subcontractor’s claim of lien does not need …
Payment and Collection
Public Owner Not Liable for Forged Non-Statutory Bond
When a cleaning contractor failed to pay its employees for cleaning services at a university, its employees sued the Board of Regents (BOR), asserting various creative arguments. For instance, they argued that the BOR and university were negligent in failing …
Georgia Amends Lien Statute to Cover General Conditions and Other Contract Costs
The Georgia legislature recently amended the lien statute to effectively reverse a ruling by the Georgia Court of Appeals that prevented lien claimants from recovering general conditions costs and interest.
Background: 182 Tenth, LLC v. Manhattan Constr. Co.
In the …
The False Claims Act: What Construction Financial Managers Need to Know
Building Profits — the magazine for the Construction Financial Management Association — recently published an article written by AHC Attorney David Cook . Read the False Claims Act: What CFMs Need to Know. …
Surety Bond Lesson: Properly Identify the Parties
Surety bonds offer security to owners, contractors, subcontractors, and others for performance of work and payment therefor. Both payment and performance bonds provide a sense of comfort to parties that rely on bonded parties. But before relying on surety bonds, …
Effect of Municipalities’ Ultra Vires Contracts
In several prior blog posts, we discussed the effectiveness of implied-contract claims against public owners, such as counties, school boards, and municipalities. For instance, prior posts have addressed:
…The Creative-But-High Standard of “Alternative” Claims in Construction Disputes
Sometimes construction claimants and their attorneys need to think outside the box in their efforts to recover payment for work. There are many situations in which claimants adequately prove they are entitled to recover, but for one reason or another …
Recovery of County’s Ultra Vires Payments
At some point, a county’s board or administrators may be faced with complaints from the community about payments made to a private entity. Members of the community (or competitors of the payee) may raise a number of complaints, including:
• …
Fast Track Arbitration as a Vehicle for Resolving Small Claims
Many contractors and subcontractors fear the unpredictable costs of litigating their claims. This is especially the case if the claim is small. In some instances, the uncertainty of legal fees and consultant costs can cause them to forego asserting their …
Recovery of Attorney Fees and Interest Under The Georgia Prompt Pay Act
In November 2010, the Georgia Court of Appeals interpreted the Georgia Prompt Pay Act to mandate the recovery of reasonable attorney fees to a prevailing party.
The Prompt Pay Act
Georgia’s Prompt Pay Act (the “Act”) generally provides additional remedies …