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Construction Law, Peter F. Crofton, David R. Cook, C. Jackson Parker

Mercer Law Review

This annual Survey Article focuses on noteworthy opinions by Georgia appellate courts and federal courts in Georgia relevant to the practice of construction law. This Survey Article highlights key developments, including Georgia’s Anti-Indemnity Act, High Voltage Safety Act, Lien Waiver Statute, the United States Supreme Court’s recent Sackett v. EPA decision, the Southern States Chemical and Tampa Tank dispute, insurance coverage updates, discovery, forum selection clauses, and more. For construction lawyers, these developments are essential to understand in navigating the ever-evolving practice of construction law in Georgia.

Construction Law, Peter M. Crofton, David R. Cook, C. Jackson Parker

Mercer Law Review

In addition to common issues of construction law, cases from this year’s Survey period address novel issues such as the interplay of construction law and constitutional law and mandatory COVID-19 vaccines. As predicted in last year’s survey article, cases covered this year address the continuing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Moreover, while construction projects resumed, the industry faced normal problems as well as unprecedented supply-chain difficulties.

Construction Law, David Cook, Peter Crofton

Mercer Law Review

The year 2020 brought about interesting judicial opinions in construction law addressing licensing issues, contractual, and common-law indemnity, including the anti-indemnity statute, homeowner’s association rights, and the recovery of lost profits on incomplete work. It also addressed standard construction-law issues in unique contexts, such as construction liens and insurance coverage and exclusions. Though the year faced the COVID-19 pandemic, decisions addressing the unprecedented circumstances caused by the virus will likely come in future years. This Article surveys significant judicial, regulatory, and legislative developments in Georgia construction law during the period from June 1, 2020, through May 31, 2021.

Construction Law, Ward Stone Jr.

Mercer Law Review

During the Survey Period, the Georgia appellate courts handed down a number of decisions underscoring the requirement that contractors hold valid and current contractor’s licenses issued by the Secretary of State’s office in order to be able to enforce construction contracts.Several attempts to side‑step the statute,carve out exceptions, or avoid the harsh consequences of violating the statute were rejected in favor of strict interpretation. As several courts noted concerning the licensing statutes:

[I]n construing any statutory text, we must presume that the General Assembly meant what it said and said what it meant. To that end, we must afford the …

Construction Law, Frank O. Brown Jr.

Mercer Law Review

This Article focuses on noteworthy decisions by Georgia appellate courts and Georgia federal district courts between June 1, 2018 and May 31, 2019, that are relevant to the practice of construction law.

• Arbitration
• Contract Disclaimers
• Indemnification Provisions
• Witness Value Testimony
• Acceptance Doctrine
• Apportionment of Damages
• Liquidated Damages
• Statute of Repose

Construction Law, Frank O. Brown Jr.

Mercer Law Review

This Article focuses on noteworthy opinions by Georgia appellate courts between June 1, 2016 and May 31, 2017 that are relevant to the practice of construction law.

Construction Law, Frank O. Brown Jr.

Mercer Law Review

This Article focuses on noteworthy opinions by Georgia appellate courts between June 1, 2015 and May 31, 2016 relevant to the practice of construction law and on an important amendment to Official Code of Georgia Annotated (O.C.G.A.) section 13-8-2,1 expanding its anti-indemnity provisions.

Construction Law, Frank O. Brown Jr.

Mercer Law Review

This Article focuses on noteworthy opinions by Georgia appellate courts between June 1, 2014 and May 31, 2015 relevant to the practice of construction law.

Construction Law, Frank O. Brown Jr.

Mercer Law Review

This Article focuses on noteworthy opinions issued by Georgia appellate courts between June 1, 2013 and May 31, 2014 that are relevant to the practice of construction law. Because condominium projects often result in construction-defect litigation, this Article also briefly discusses an amendment to section 44-3-106(h) of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated (O.C.G.A.), part of the Georgia Condominium Act, which became effective July 1, 2014.

Construction Law, Frank O. Brown Jr.

Mercer Law Review

This Article focuses on noteworthy construction law opinions by Georgia appellate courts between June 1, 2012 and May 31, 2013, and one case, Estate of Pitts v. City of Atlanta, decided on remand in July 2013. The Article briefly discusses the Georgia False Claims Act,' which became effective July 1, 2012.

Construction Law, Frank O. Brown Jr.

Mercer Law Review

This Article focuses on noteworthy construction law decisions by Georgia appellate and federal district courts in Georgia between June 1, 2011 and May 31, 2012.

Construction Law, Frank O. Brown Jr.

Mercer Law Review

This Article focuses on a few noteworthy construction law decisions by Georgia appellate courts between June 1, 2010 and May 31, 2011.'

Construction Law, Frank O. Brown Jr.

Mercer Law Review

This Article focuses on noteworthy construction law decisions by appellate and federal district courts in Georgia between June 1, 2009 and May 31, 2010.

• NEGLIGENT CONSTRUCTION
• GEORGIA'S CONSTRUCTION-RELATED STATUTE OF REPOSE
• STATUTES OF LIMITATION
• ASSIGNMENT OF CLAIMS
• DAMAGES LIMITATIONS
• THE MILLER ACTS
• WARRANTIES
• ARBITRATION
• RIGHT TO TERMINATE CONTRACTS
• ECONOMIC LOSS RULE
• ACCEPTANCE DOCTRINE

Construction Law, Frank O. Brown Jr.

Mercer Law Review

This Article focuses on noteworthy construction law decisions by Georgia appellate courts between June 1, 2008 and May 31, 2009, and significant construction-related Georgia legislation and regulations during the same period.

Construction Law, Dana R. Grantham, David L. Hobson, David J. Mura Jr.

Mercer Law Review

This Article surveys construction law decisions handed down by Georgia courts and construction-related legislation enacted by the Georgia General Assembly between June 1, 2006 and May 31, 2007. The cases this year are divided into four general categories: (1) contracts, (2) torts, (3) liens and bonds, and (4) arbitration. Recent legislation is summarized in Section V of this Article.

Construction Law, Henry L. Balkcom Iv, Dana R. Grantham, Devin H. Gordon

Mercer Law Review

This Article surveys construction law decisions handed down by Georgia courts and construction-related legislation enacted by the Georgia General Assembly between June 1, 2005 and May 31, 2006. As in prior years, the cases discussed are divided into five categories: (1) contracts, (2) torts, (3) mechanics and materialmen's liens, (4) arbitration, and (5) miscellaneous. Recent legislation is highlighted and summarized in Section VI, including a brief overview of the General Assembly's substantial revisions to Georgia's "Right to Repair" Act, the mandatory alternative dispute resolution framework that the legislature put in place in 2004 for residential construction defect claims in Georgia.

Construction Law, Henry L. Balkcom Iv, Dana R. Grantham, Devin H. Gordon

Mercer Law Review

This Article surveys construction law decisions handed down by Georgia courts and construction-related legislation enacted by the Georgia General Assembly between June 1, 2004 and May 31, 2005. As in prior years, the selected cases primarily fall within five categories: (1) contracts, (2) torts, (3) mechanics' and materialmen's liens, (4) arbitration, and (5) miscellaneous. Recent legislation is highlighted in Section VI.

Construction Law, Dennis J. Webb Jr., Henry L. Balkcom Iv, Dana R. Grantham

Mercer Law Review

This Article surveys construction law decisions handed down by Georgia appellate courts between June 1, 2003, and May 31, 2004. The cases discussed primarily fall within five categories: (1) contract; (2) tort; (3) mechanics' and materialmen's liens; (4) arbitration; and (5) legislation. The Article also includes a miscellaneous section covering noteworthy cases that do not fit neatly into the sections enumerated above.

Construction Law, Dennis J. Webb Jr., Justin S. Scott, Henry L. Balkcom Iv, Dana R. Grantham

Mercer Law Review

This Article surveys construction law decisions handed down by Georgia appellate courts between June 1, 2002, and May 31, 2003. The cases discussed primarily fall within five categories: (1) contract; (2) tort; (3) mechanic's and materialman's liens; (4) workers' compensation; and (5) arbitration. The Article also includes a miscellaneous section covering noteworthy cases that do not fit neatly into the sections enumerated above.

Construction Law, Brian J. Morrissey, Timothy N. Toler

Mercer Law Review

The decisions rendered by the Georgia Supreme Court and Georgia Court of Appeals during this one-year survey period included a small opening in lender liability, a minimalist view of the requirements of evidence as it pertains to the law of fraud, an extensive discussion of the law of damages as it applies to construction contracts, and a harsh result because of failure to comply with the requirements of the mechanic's and materialmen's lien statute. This Article addresses these significant movements in the law and some of the reaffirmations of existing law in the construction field between June 1, 1998, and …

Construction Law, Brian J. Morrissey

Mercer Law Review

Last year's survey period focused on efforts to expand the passive concealment doctrine in construction cases and the parameters of arbitration under the Georgia Arbitration Code.

Substantively, with respect to expanding doctrines of fraud as they pertain to construction projects, the courts rejected attempts to impose liability for passive concealment in commercial settings. Historically, the doctrine of passive concealment has been applied to residential building relationships, but never in a commercial transaction. Part of the impetus behind this move is the fact that in a typical construction dispute involving economic damages, statutes of limitations begin to run upon performance, rather …

Construction Law, Brian J. Morrissey

Mercer Law Review

During the survey period, the appellate courts of Georgia continued to revisit certain issues that have displayed remarkable persistence in the trial courts.

For example, there were a number of attempts to impose liability directly against lenders on construction projects for the failure to insure that payments were made to contractors in such a way as to avoid the impositions of liens; however, the appellate courts failed to depart from traditional notions that lenders are typically not responsible for such failures.

Of particular significance during this survey period was the outline by the court of appeals of a new doctrine …

Construction Law, Brian J. Morrissey

Mercer Law Review

As the construction industry moved through its recession, a number of issues eventually percolated their way through the appellate courts. Not surprisingly, once projects began going under, many of these cases focused on novel theories seeking to impose liability against "deep pockets."

The most significant event during the survey period was the development of a unique approach to impose liability against the government for the insolvency of sureties presented on public works projects, and the abrupt reversal of the adoption of this theory by the Georgia Supreme Court.

Also during the survey period, there were a number of attempts to …

Construction Law, Brian J. Morrissey, Matthew W. Wallace

Mercer Law Review

Nowhere is the downturn in the economy more pronounced than in the construction industry. Contractors and subcontractors are going out of business with increasing frequency. When a party to a construction project defaults on its obligations, everyone else involved in the project is affected. Material suppliers may have been left unpaid, the bank must examine its potential liability, the surety must determine its exposure, and above all else, the work.must be completed. The cases and legislation during this survey period reflect this aspect of the construction industry.

The most significant event during the survey period was the enactment of new …

Construction Law, Brian J. Morrissey, Matthew W. Wallace

Mercer Law Review

Transactions within the construction industry are becoming increasingly complex as lawyers are required to consider intricate questions concerning such diverse areas as lender liability, insurance, and environmental law, along with the more traditional tort and contract principles. The recent economic downturn in the construction industry has changed the nature of the relationships between contractor, subcontractor, and developer, complicating the lawyer's task. This economic downturn has also sharpened the conflict in the Georgia Court of Appeals between age-old principles of contract and banking law and newer principles that may better reflect the increasingly complex legal environment. For example, Georgia courts have …

Construction Law, Brian J. Morrissey, R. Kyle Woods

Mercer Law Review

The field of construction law embraces a wide range of topics that students of the law more traditionally recognize as contracts, torts, insurance, remedies, procedure, and property. These traditional legal concepts, however, have special applications in construction industry disputes. Because of the burgeoning nature of construction law practice, a survey within this area of specialization will be helpful to practitioners. This Article is intended to focus upon legal problems and issues of current interest to those who represent owners, architects, engineers, contractors, subcontractors, and suppliers on construction projects. To facilitate an understanding of recent developments in construction law, the authors …