In a recent opinion, the Supreme Court of Ohio definitively held that a creditor does not have an affirmative duty to disclose facts that materially increase risk to a surety—and nor does a surety have a duty to disclose to...more
In 2024, we alerted you to a decision out of the First Appellate District of Ohio (The Huntington National Bank v. Schneider, C-230072 (December 29, 2023)), where the Court was asked to review a grant of summary judgment in...more
Effective September 1, 2025, Texas Senate Bill 140 (SB 140) materially expands the scope of the Texas Business and Commerce Code §§ 301-305 (Mini-TCPA) governing both telephone and SMS marketing. The statute requires...more
At its core, risk management involves identifying, assessing, and mitigating potential risks to minimize losses and ensure business continuity. A routinely used and universally accepted risk management resource that...more
A surety asserting an indemnity claim in federal court in Georgia sought recovery against indemnitors involved with a joint venture put together to bid on construction projects requiring surety bonds....more
The Oklahoma Supreme Court has rejected a contractor’s performance bond claim due to the lack of adequate notice to the subcontractor’s surety (see Flintco LLC v. Total Installation Management Specialists, Inc., No. 120,100...more
Construction bonds are vital tools in the construction industry. A construction bond is an instrument arising out of suretyship law. A project owner may require a contractor to obtain one or more types of construction bond to...more
As construction claim lawyers, we are always on the lookout for insurance policies or “bonds” that might satisfy our client’s claim. On federal projects, this includes performance and payment bonds known as Miller Act bonds....more
Key Insurance Types for Construction - Construction projects often involve numerous risks, but various insurance policies are designed to mitigate these....more
In Swinerton Builders, Inc. v. Argonaut Insurance Co., Swinerton Builders, a contractor, sued a surety on bond claims arising from defaults by its subcontractor on a series of work orders. The owner of Swinerton’s mechanical...more
Applicable Provider Types: Any individual or entity that receives Medicare reimbursement for selling or renting DMEPOS - Is Your Entity in Compliance? Most durable medical equipment, prosthetics, orthotics and...more
An owner hired a contractor to make improvements on real property, but the contractor failed to pay its subcontractors or suppliers. What happens next? Under Michigan’s Construction Lien Act, contractors, subcontractors,...more
If you are a business owner who is interested in applying for SBA financial assistance or participating in SBA programs such as the 8(a) Business Development Program, HUBZone, WOSB, EDWOSB, VOSB, or SDVOSB, you may be...more
Governor Landry recently signed into law two legislative acts that should allow Private Works Act and Public Works Act payment bond sureties to rely on defenses available to their general contractor principals in defense of...more
What You Need to Know About the New Classes of Treasury-Authorized Reinsurers in Advance of the August 9, 2024 Implementation Date - As we reported in our June 24, 2024 Legal Briefing, the US Department of the Treasury...more
The US Department of the Treasury (Treasury) has finalized a long overdue update to federal rules governing the Federal surety bond program (Program). The Final Rule (Rule) adds two new classes of reinsurers, including...more
Beginning July 1, 2024, nearly all recruiters and temporary help agencies (THAs) working with businesses or candidates in Ontario will be required to have a licence. All applications must be submitted to the Director of...more
Following up on our first blog post about employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs) for construction companies, this post addresses surety bond requirements as well as the way in which ESOPs can incentivize employees and...more
On January 9, the State of Oregon enacted a new bill on money transmission licensing, specifically stating that “each license application shall be accompanied by a security device in the amount of $25,000.” ...more
The Appellate Court of Maryland issued a reported opinion in a case construing an American Institute of Architects (“AIA”) A312 performance bond. In Wildewood Operating Company, LLC v. WRV Holdings, LLC, et al. 2023 Md. App....more
As 2023 comes to a close, it is the perfect time to look back and review recent Oregon legislative changes that will impact the construction industry in the coming year. The 82nd Session of the Oregon Legislature...more
On October 13, Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law a comprehensive licensing regime for digital asset companies operating in California. Until this point, California had refrained from taking a definitive position on...more
The Opportune 2023 Study has been conducted to independently calculate the OCS plugging and abandonment (P&A) liability, assess the risk such liability poses to the U.S. taxpayer, and perform a cost-benefit analysis of how...more
As you may be aware, Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) fidelity bonds and fiduciary liability insurance are not the same. Both serve to mitigate risk for fiduciaries, and are critical aspects of an employee...more
Bond markets have been in upheaval recently, with knock-on impacts on decisions on whether to make or defend calls on performance security on construction projects. In the first quarter of this year, we saw the continued...more