NEW HAVEN MISSOURI CONSTRUCTION EXPERT WITNESS
DIRECTORY AND CAPABILITIES

Contractor Entitled to Defense in Suit Filed by Performance Bond Carrier

July 08, 2025 — Tred R. Eyerly - Insurance Law Hawaii
Interpreting Kentucky law, the Sixth Circuit determined that the contractor who failed to complete a project was entitled to a defense in an action brought by its performance bond carrier. Phoenix Ins. Co., et al. v. Wehr Constructors, Inc., 2025 U.S, App. LEXIS 9258 (6th Cir. April 18, 2025). Wehr entered into a contract with St. Claire Medical Center to construct a Medical Services Pavilion as an addition to the main hospital facility. A standard form issued by the American Institute of Architects, AIA document form A101-1997, was used. (Construction Agreement). Section 14.2 of the form contained a termination clause that allowed St. Claire to terminate the contract if Wehr committed a "substantial breach," provided that the architect on the project certified that sufficient cause existed (the Termination Clause). If the Termination Clause was invoked, Wehr would not be entitled to the remaining unpaid balance of the contract and St. Claire could seek damages from Wehr if the cost of completing the project exceeded the unpaid balance. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Tred R. Eyerly, Damon Key Leong Kupchak Hastert
Mr. Eyerly may be contacted at te@hawaiilawyer.com

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Ask (OSHA) and You Shall Receive? DOL Expands Opinion Letter Program for OSHA and Other DOL Agencies

July 15, 2025 — Kip J. Adams - Lewis Brisbois Newsroom
Boston, Mass. (June 16, 2025) - A common refrain from many U.S. employers following receipt of an Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) citation is that if they had known that they were in violation, they would have acted quickly to correct it. Well, now the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has expanded access for employers in doubt about whether they are in compliance with the law through the “opinion letter program.” The DOL has made the opinion letter program available across five of its agencies to expand compliance assistance. They are:

• The Wage and Hour Division
• OSHA
• The Employee Benefits Security Administration
• The Veterans’ Employment and Training Service
• The Mine Safety and Health Administration

Employers now can request opinion letters addressing their specific question. As outlined on the DOL’s website, an effective request shall include:

• an accurate and complete description of the facts, such as job duties, work schedules or pay structure;
• confirmation that the request is not related to an existing matter that requires the interpretation of federal law (i.e., not related to an open investigation, citation, etc.);
• details that allow review and response but do not include sensitive personal or confidential business information; and
• a phone number in case the DOL needs to follow up.

Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Kip J. Adams, Lewis Brisbois
Mr. Adams may be contacted at Kip.Adams@lewisbrisbois.com

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Candace Dickson Recognized as “Up & Coming Lawyer” by The Indiana Lawyer

June 16, 2025 — Lewis Brisbois Newsroom
Northwest Indiana (June 3, 2025) – Northwest Indiana Associate Candace C. Dickson was recently honored by The Indiana Lawyer as an “Up & Coming Lawyer” at the organization’s “Leadership in Law” awards ceremony. According to the publication, this year’s honorees include 37 talented attorneys who “represent the strength and the future of Indiana’s legal profession.” When asked why she chose law as a career, Mrs. Dickson said “I decided to enter the legal profession so that I could assist my community with understanding the law. Many of them do not have access to an attorney. I wanted to fill that gap for individuals who looked like me and were from my hometown.” Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Lewis Brisbois

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Environmental Update: Regulatory Notes – April 2025

May 12, 2025 — Anthony B. Cavender - Gravel2Gavel Construction & Real Estate Law Blog
April has proven a busy month for environmental issues when it comes to the regulatory arena. Below are just a few of the notable developments:

• Coal-Fired Relief: On April 8, 2025, the President issued Presidential Proclamation 10914, “Regulatory Relief for Certain Stationary Sources to Promote American Energy,” published in the Federal Register on April 21, 2025, at 90 FR 16777. A 2024 change to EPA’s National Emissions Standards will place severe burdens on coal-fired power plants. Accordingly, the President, pursuant to the authority vested in him by the Constitution and Section 112(i)(4) of the Clean Air Act, proclaims that the sources identified in Annex I of this Proclamation are exempt from compliance with the rule for two years, beginning on July 8, 2027, and concluding on July 8, 2029. At the present time, technology to implement the new standards is not available. (Forty-seven stationary sources are identified in Annex I.)

• A Modified General Permit for the CWA: On April 15, 2025, EPA published its modifications to the 2022 Clean Water Act Construction General Permit. (See 90 FR 15653.)Section 402 of the Act authorizes EPA to regulate construction activities that result in discharges of pollutants to the waters of the United States. The initial notice of a revised Construction General Permit was published in the Federal Register on January 24, 2022. The latest revisions apply to “Lands of Exclusive Federal Jurisdiction,” where EPA is the only permitting authority. In addition, this latest notice responds to the recent Supreme Court ruling in City and County of San Francisco v. EPA, which concerned ambiguous receiving water quality limitations applicable to many municipal wastewater treatment facilities. EPA is likely to provide additional guidance that will be of interest to National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDE) permittees.

Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Anthony B. Cavender, Pillsbury

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How to Manage the Scope & Costs of eDiscovery: Understanding the Recently Released AAA eDiscovery Best Practices

August 12, 2025 — Brett Burney - The Dispute Resolver
When you’re heading down the path toward litigation or arbitration, you have to collect and manage documents and files. These can be emails, drawings, spreadsheets, images, videos, text messages, reports, and anything else that you need to tell your client’s story. When managing electronically stored information (ESI), it’s crucial to effectively collect, preserve, review, and produce the ESI to avoid unnecessary delays and soaring costs. This is so important that the American Arbitration Association (AAA) recently released a set of “E-Discovery Considerations for Construction Arbitrations” in conjunction with the National Construction Dispute Resolution Committee (NCDRC). The purpose of the paper is to “highlight for arbitrators and parties the need to actively manage the ediscovery process” to achieve an “efficient and cost-effective dispute resolution.” When you collect documents, emails, images, and files from your client, you have to store them somewhere. Regrettably, many firms simply copy them to a local server, or a cloud-based storage service such as Dropbox, or even their own computer. These are lax and risky workflows unless your firm has instituted security best practices, can track access logs, and can defensibly ensure no ESI is modified before production (see Consideration #5 on document preservation). Not to mention that these basic storage approaches don’t give you the ability to search, filter, and sort files, nor can you tag items for relevancy and privilege or indicate their use for a witness. It’s crucial to use the right tool for storing, reviewing, and producing ESI, as it will become the foundation for your defensible ediscovery workflow. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Brett Burney, Nextpoint Law Group
Mr. Burney may be contacted at bburney@nextpointlawgroup.com

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Chambers USA 2025 Recognizes Four Partners and Three Practices at Lewis Brisbois

July 01, 2025 — Lewis Brisbois Newsroom
Washington, D.C. (June 5, 2025) – Four Lewis Brisbois partners and three Lewis Brisbois practices were recently ranked by Chambers in its 2025 USA rankings list. Wichita Managing Partner Alan L. Rupe was ranked Band 1 for “Labor & Employment – Kansas.” Phoenix Partner Gina M. Bartoszek was ranked Band 2 for “Insurance – Arizona.” Washington, D.C. Managing Partner Jane C. Luxton was ranked Band 4 for “Environment – District of Columbia.” Additionally, Washington, D.C. & Fort Lauderdale Partner J. Mario Fontes, Jr. was ranked Band 5 for “Corporate/M&A & Private Equity – Florida: South.” Chambers also ranked Lewis Brisbois’ Georgia Insurance Practice Band 2, its Kansas Labor & Employment Practice Band 2, and its Washington, D.C. Environmental Practice Band 4. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Lewis Brisbois

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The Evolution of Construction Jobsite Safety: Lessons From the Field

May 19, 2025 — Milwaukee Tool - Construction Executive
Each year, Construction Safety Week offers the construction industry an opportunity to pause and refocus on the most important goal: ensuring every worker returns home safely. Mike Spensieri, who leads jobsite safety initiatives at Milwaukee Tool, shared observations from the field about how safety engagement is evolving—and where it needs to go next. BROADENING THE CONVERSATION AROUND SAFETY Spensieri’s work spans personal protective equipment and safer tool usage practices. Throughout the year, his team works with contractors and safety directors to support jobsite safety programs across the country. “During Safety Week, we focus more directly on tradespeople themselves,” he explained. “We meet crews where they are—from small sites to megaprojects—and talk about real-world practices: everything from ergonomic tool use to OSHA dust regulations.” Reprinted courtesy of Milwaukee Tool, Construction Executive, a publication of Associated Builders and Contractors. All rights reserved. Read the full story...

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Nomos LLP Partner Garret Murai Recognized by Super Lawyers

August 05, 2025 — Garret Murai - California Construction Law Blog
Nomos LLP Partner Garret Murai has been recognized as a 2025 Northern California Super Lawyer honoree in the area of Construction Litigation. This is the twelfth consecutive year he has been recognized by Super Lawyers. Super Lawyers, an annual listing of outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and personal achievement, is limited to no more than five percent (5%) of lawyers in a state who are selected through a multiphase process that includes a statewide survey of lawyers, independent research evaluation and peer reviews by practice area. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Garret Murai, Nomos LLP

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