SEATTLE WASHINGTON BUILDING CONSULTANT
DIRECTORY AND CAPABILITIES

Carbon Sequestration Can Combat Global Warming, Sometimes in Unexpected Ways

April 02, 2024 — Michael S. McDonough, Robert A. James & Amanda G. Halter - Gravel2Gavel Construction & Real Estate Law Blog
Whether by land, by sea or through human innovation, carbon sequestration is likely coming to (or already happening in) a destination near you. As our planet, overdosed on greenhouse gases, battles climate disasters, a logical solution is to simply stop pumping carbon dioxide into the air. Legislation worldwide is aimed at that target, but reducing output alone may not be enough. There are still billions of tons of extra CO2 already in the atmosphere—this crossroads is where sequestration comes into play. Carbon sequestration is exactly what it sounds like—the storage of CO2. Once carbon is sucked out of the air, or in some cases pulled directly from industrial smokestacks, sequestration can be undertaken in a lot of different ways. Carbon storage happens naturally, when forests and oceans absorb and convert CO2 into organic matter, but carbon dioxide can also be artificially injected into deep underground rock formations (or wells), or in some cases technological approaches repurpose carbon into a resource like concrete, or as a catalyst in a closed-loop industrial system. However it’s accomplished, the point of sequestration is to stabilize carbon and ensure it doesn’t creep back into our atmosphere. Researchers, like those at the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, now say that CO2 removal is vital to keeping global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius (past that threshold, climate change could reach catastrophic levels). A 2023 University of Oxford study estimated that, currently, about two billion metric tons of carbon dioxide are being removed each year, primarily through land management (i.e., planting trees), and suggested that we need to double that amount to avoid dangerous global warming levels. Reprinted courtesy of Michael S. McDonough, Pillsbury, Robert A. James, Pillsbury and Amanda G. Halter, Pillsbury Mr. McDonough may be contacted at michael.mcdonough@pillsburylaw.com Mr. James may be contacted at rob.james@pillsburylaw.com Ms. Halter may be contacted at amanda.halter@pillsburylaw.com Read the full story...

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Labor Shortages In Construction

December 04, 2023 — Jason Feld & Chris Bates - Kahana Feld
Similar to other industries, the ongoing labor shortage crisis in the United States is detrimentally impacting construction activities in both the residential and commercial sector. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the turnover rate for the construction industry since 2021 has risen to 56%. And while the national unemployment rate ranges between 0.4% to 7.5%, the unemployment rate for construction is roughly four times the national average (See, Associated Builders and Contractors, Markenstein Advisors Report dated July 28, 2023). 73% of workers preferred to stay in a remote work environment, and another 40% of the global workforce has elected to voluntarily remove themselves from the workplace. (See, 2021 Microsoft Work Index). In particular with the construction industry, employment rates have returned to pre-pandemic levels hovering around 12% unemployment in 2020 to 6% in 2022. (See, Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University, Carlos Martin). So where did all the workers go? During the height of the 2020 Covid-19 Pandemic and for the next few years, the county experienced what most people are calling “The Great Resignation”. May people took jobs with better pay and better alignment with their values. Approximately 40% stated a new business. Many elected to become stay-at-home parents forgoing a paycheck to raise their families while the other spouse works, especially due to the rising costs of childcare. About 1 in every 4 baby-boomers retired. Others took part-time employment, entered military service or left the workforce due to disability or injury. (See, Bloomberg Businessweek). Reprinted courtesy of Jason Feld, Kahana Feld and Chris Bates, Kahana Feld Mr. Feld may be contacted at jfeld@kahanafeld.com Mr. Bates may be contacted at cbates@kahanafeld.com Read the full story...

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Let’s Talk About a Statutory First-Party Bad Faith Claim Against an Insurer

February 19, 2024 — David Adelstein - Florida Construction Legal Updates
Let’s talk about a statutory first-party bad faith claim against an insurer under Florida law. A recent opinion, discussed below, does a nice job providing a synopsis of a first-party statutory bad faith claim against an insurer: The Florida Legislature created the first-party bad faith cause of action by enacting section 624.155, Florida Statutes, which imposes a duty on insurers to settle their policyholders’ claims in good faith. The statutory obligation on the insurer is to timely evaluate and pay benefits owed under the insurance policy. The damages recoverable by the insured in a bad faith action are those amounts that are the reasonably foreseeable consequences of the insurer’s bad faith in resolving a claim, which include consequential damages. “[A] statutory bad faith claim under section 624.155 is ripe for litigation when there has been (1) a determination of the insurer’s liability for coverage; (2) a determination of the extent of the insured’s damages; and (3) the required [civil remedy] notice is filed pursuant to section 624.155(3)(a).” Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of David Adelstein, Kirwin Norris, P.A.
Mr. Adelstein may be contacted at dma@kirwinnorris.com

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Be Sure to Bring Up Any Mechanic’s Lien Defenses Early and Often

November 27, 2023 — Christopher G. Hill - Construction Law Musings
As those of you who regularly read Musings are aware, mechanic’s liens are a big part of my law practice and a big issue here at this construction law blog. I’ve discussed the picky requirements of the mechanic’s lien statutes in Virginia and how the 90 and 150-day rules are strictly enforced. However, a recent case out of the City of Norfolk Virginia Circuit Court cautions that while failure to meet these strict requirements may invalidate a lien, it only does so if the owner or general contractor seeking to invalidate the lien argues the invalidity and/or presents evidence of that invalidity either pretrial or during trial. In Premier Restoration LLC v. Barnes, the Court considered the following facts. The defendant homeowners had a house fire and the resulting damage was the subject of an insurance claim that was paid and checks sent to the homeowners. Premier filed a mechanic’s lien in response to Barnes’s failure to pay for Premier’s restoration construction services after Barnes’s home was destroyed by fire. Premier seeks a decree to enforce the lien, asking the court to order the sale of Barnes’s property to recover its damages or, alternatively, a judgment in its favor. With the Complaint seeking enforcement of the lien and damages for breach of contract, and this is a key point, Premier provided a copy of the mechanic’s lien along with the affidavit that is part of the statutory form swearing that the Owner was justly indebted to Premiere. The homeowners filed a counterclaim for unfinished work, including unfinished punch list work. After a trial during which no evidence regarding either the timeliness of the lien recording or whether any of the work sought to be encompassed in the lien was performed outside of the statutory 150-day window was presented by either side, the defendants filed a post-trial motion seeking to invalidate the lien as including sums for work outside of the 150-day window. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of The Law Office of Christopher G. Hill
Mr. Hill may be contacted at chrisghill@constructionlawva.com

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Hawaii Supreme Court Says Aloha to Insurers Trying to Recoup Defense Costs From Policyholders

January 02, 2024 — Lara Degenhart Cassidy & Yosef Itkin - Hunton Insurance Recovery Blog
The Hawaii Supreme Court emphatically rejected insurer efforts to seek reimbursement of defense costs absent a provision in the policy providing for such reimbursement in St. Paul Fire & Marine Insurance Company v. Bodell Construction Company, No. SCCQ-22-0000658, 2023 WL 7517083, (Haw. Nov. 14, 2023). The state high court’s well-reasoned decision rests on bedrock law regarding insurance policy construction and application, follows the nationwide trend of courts compelling insurers to satisfy their contractual obligations in full, and should carry great weight as other jurisdictions continue to debate the same issue. In Bodell, the Hawaii Supreme Court joined the swelling ranks of courts recognizing that an insurer may not use a reservation of rights to create the extra-contractual “right” to recoup already paid defense costs for a claim on which the insurer ultimately owes no coverage. See, e.g., Am. & Foreign Ins. Co. v. Jerry’s Sport Ctr., Inc., 2 A.3d 526 (Pa. 2010). Other jurisdictions, such as California, will permit an insurer to seek reimbursement from a policyholder for defense costs incurred in defending claims later determined to be uncovered. See Buss v. Superior Court, 16 Cal.4th 35 (1997) (holding insurers have a right to reimbursement of defense costs incurred for noncovered claims). Reprinted courtesy of Lara Degenhart Cassidy, Hunton Andrews Kurth and Yosef Itkin, Hunton Andrews Kurth Ms. Cassidy may be contacted at lcassidy@HuntonAK.com Mr. Itkin may be contacted at yitkin@HuntonAK.com Read the full story...

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AGC’s 2024 Construction Outlook. Infrastructure is Bright but Office-Geddon is Not

February 12, 2024 — Garret Murai - California Construction Law Blog
The Associated General Contractors of America has issued its 2024 Construction Outlook. According to its survey of construction contractors throughout the United States, contractors have a mixed outlook for 2024 with firms predicting transitions in the demand for projects, the types of challenges they will face and technologies they plan on embracing. According to the survey, contractors continue to cope with significant labor shortages, the impact of higher interest rates and input costs and a supply chain which, while better than in past few years, is still far from normal. Of the 17 categories of construction types included in the survey, respondents expected a net positive growth in 14 of those categories, with infrastructure projects leading the net positive readings following the passage of the Infrastructure Bill in 2021, and commercial retail and office leading the net negative readings as a result of the continuing office-geddon: Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Garret Murai, Nomos LLP
Mr. Murai may be contacted at gmurai@nomosllp.com

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Natural Hydrogen May Seem New in Town, but It’s Been Here All Along

April 22, 2024 — Elina Teplinsky & Sheila McCafferty Harvey - Gravel2Gavel Construction & Real Estate Law Blog
When it comes to renewable energy, hydrogen is hailed as a pivotal resource in the zero-carbon game plan. Hydrogen energy is accessible, produces lower greenhouse gas emissions and can use existing gas infrastructure to power electricity and heat, produce other gases and fuels, and more. Recently, a “new” type of hydrogen—has captured the attention of climate scientists. Natural hydrogen—often referred to as gold hydrogen—stands apart from other, more established types of hydrogen, which require extraction and expensive maneuvering to produce. Natural hydrogen exists underground in its pure form (i.e., it’s not combined with other molecules). Estimates vary, but some researchers suspect that Earth holds as much as five million megatons of hydrogen beneath our feet. Extracting just 2 percent of that supply, in theory, has the potential to get us to net-zero emissions for 200 years. From Past Prediction to Accidental Discovery Viacheslav Zgonnik, CEO of the Denver-based startup Natural Hydrogen Energy, told the New York Times that Russian chemist Dmitri Mendeleev (also known as the “Father of the Periodic Table”) wrote about the presence of natural hydrogen as long ago as 1888. Somehow, the information was lost along the way, and when pockets of such hydrogen were occasionally found, they were treated as anomalies. Reprinted courtesy of Elina Teplinsky, Pillsbury and Sheila McCafferty Harvey, Pillsbury Ms. Teplinsky may be contacted at elina.teplinsky@pillsburylaw.com Ms. Harvey may be contacted at sheila.harvey@pillsburylaw.com Read the full story...

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Emerging World Needs $1.5 Trillion for Green Buildings, IFC Says

December 11, 2023 — Natasha White - Bloomberg
The International Finance Corporation is looking to develop a guarantee facility for private investors to boost finance for greener construction in emerging markets, as growing populations, urbanization and industrialization are set to spur pollution far beyond safe limits. IFC, the world’s largest global development institution focused on the private sector in low-income countries, is working with its counterparts in the World Bank Group to “create a one-stop shop for guarantees offered to private investors,” Susan Lund, vice president for economics and private sector development, told Bloomberg in an interview. We have “really high aspirations to scale that up dramatically for climate finance and in particular for green buildings and decarbonizing the construction sector,” she said. Lund’s comments follow a recent speech given by World Bank President Ajay Banga who said the bank is working to better unify guarantee insurance across the institutions. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Natasha White, Bloomberg

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