News & Publications

Lien rights can be one of a contractor's most important means of securing payment on any private construction project in North Carolina. Under Chapter 44A of the North Carolina Statutes, contractors that contract directly with a project owner have a right to assert a lien on the subject real property to secure payment for amounts owed for work performed. First-, second-, and third-tier subcontractors can enforce the claim of lien on real property of the [...]

In Electrical Contractors, Inc. v. 50 Morgan Hospitality Group, 212 Conn. App. 724 (2022), the Appellate Court affirmed the trial court's finding that payment from the property owner to the general contractor was a condition precedent to the general contractor's obligation to pay the subcontractor. Here, the plaintiff, an electrical subcontractor on a commercial construction project, sued the defendant, the general contractor, for nonpayment of over $350,000. The subcontract between the plaintiff and defendant provided that [...]

Highlights In a surprising decision, the First District of the California Court of Appeal upheld approval of a 43-unit residential project following years of "not in my backyard" obstruction, government resistance and numerous court challenges. Though it acknowledged that the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) was meant to serve noble purposes, the Court expressed frustration that the legislation had devolved into a "formidable tool of obstruction," particularly against projects that increase housing density. The precedent [...]