Questions Concerning whether there was Negligence and whether an Indemnification Obligation was Triggered must be Decided by Jury and not on Summary Judgment Motion

by Kent Holland | Mar 20, 2020 | indemnification clause, Newsletter Article

In a decision we previously reported on (see   our article link), a federal district court granted summary judgment to two engineering firms, concluding as a matter of law that the allegations in the complaint did not raise questions of negligence to be determined by...

Professional Liability Insurance doesn’t Cover Actions for Tortious Interference with Business Expectancy or Intentional Breach of Contract

by Kent Holland | Mar 20, 2020 | Newsletter Article

An Engineering firm (“GOAD”) had a client (Honeywell) that it was working with to submit a bid to a federal agency. GOAD decided it needed some technical assistance itself and found ITI, Inc. to provide certain engineering services as its subcontractor. At some point,...

Unlicensed Contractor Forfeits Right to Recover All Fees

by Kent Holland | Feb 25, 2020 | Newsletter Article

Where an HVAC subcontractor lacked the relevant license to do business in Washington, D.C. as a refrigeration and air conditioning contractor, its subcontract on a project was illegal and, therefore, void. It thereby forfeited any right of the to recover its fees and...

Certificate of Insurance Binds Carrier to Provide Insurance to the Entity that was Incorrectly Listed as an Additional Insured

by Kent Holland | Feb 25, 2020 | Newsletter Article

An insurance company was held bound by its agent’s written representation-made in a certificate of insurance—that a particular corporation was an additional insured under a given insurance policy. The certificate turned out to be inconsistent with the policy that only...

Homeowner Suit against Project Developer’s Geotechnical Engineer Barred by Economic Loss Doctrine

by Kent Holland | Feb 25, 2020 | Newsletter Article

A homeowner’s house developed large cracks in its foundation and walls due to settling, lateral movement of the foundation, and an unstable slope of the building lot. It filed suit against a geotechnical engineering firm that had ten years earlier prepared a site...

Contractor not a Third Party Beneficiary of Engineer’s Contract with Owner

by Kent Holland | Feb 25, 2020 | Newsletter Article

An engineer under contract to a federal agency (USAID) provided preliminary designs (the bridging documents) for a design-build project that the owner then provided to the contractor to complete the final designs for the project and then construct it. The contractor...