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Court of Appeals Discusses Implied Duty of Good Faith and Fair Dealing in Public Works Contracting

  • Posted by Lindsay K. Taft
  • On August 16, 2017
The implied duty of good faith and fair dealing is implied in every contract, including construction contracts.  Generally speaking, this implied duty requires parties cooperate with one another so that they each obtain the full benefit of their contracted bargain.  Recently, the Court of Appeals (Division II) in Nova Contracting, Inc. v. City of Olympia […]

Supreme Court Grants Petition for Review Regarding Necessary Parties in Lien Foreclosure Actions

  • Posted by Lindsay K. Taft
  • On August 11, 2017
For several years, the requirements for which parties must be named in a lien foreclosure action when a release of lien bond is in place have been cloudy.  RCW 60.04 et seq., the “mechanics’ lien” or “construction lien” statute, provides protection for a party or person who provides labor, materials, or equipment to a construction […]

Subcontractors on Washington Public Projects Can Now Get Their Retainage Money Sooner

  • Posted by Brett M. Hill
  • On July 20, 2017
Subcontractors on public projects in Washington State will no longer be required to wait until final acceptance of the project to get their retainage money. A new statute, which goes into effect on July 23, 2017 and applies only to Washington public projects, will allow subcontractors to get their retainage sooner. Under prior law, a […]

Acceptable Worksite: New City of Seattle Specification Provisions Now In Effect

  • Posted by Lindsay K. Taft
  • On July 7, 2017
The City of Seattle’s City Purchasing & Contracting Services recently revised its General Special Provisions for City construction contracts to add new “Acceptable Worksite” language.  The City indicates that the purpose of the provisions is “to ensure that City construction worksites are respectful and appropriate, including prohibiting bullying, hazing, and other similar behaviors.”  An “Acceptable […]

Ten Firm Members Recognized as Super Lawyers or Rising Stars

  • Posted by Ceslie Blass
  • On June 29, 2017
While we avoid using this blog as a platform for self-promotion, we recently received share-worthy distinctions, which both flatter and humble us. We invite you, our loyal readers, to celebrate in our success, which in great measure is due to you. John P. Ahlers, one of the firm’s founding partners, was ranked third overall across […]

Washington Contractors Should Refrain from Separately Itemizing and Billing Customers for B&O Tax

  • Posted by Bruce A. Cohen
  • On June 14, 2017
Construction attorneys rarely encounter state and local tax issues.  However, in a recent negotiation over a disputed change proposal, an Owner’s attorney argued that Washington prohibits recovery of B&O tax as a separately-billed line item in the change proposal.  Given that itemization of B&O surcharges seemed a fairly common business practice, I was initially skeptical […]

WSDOT Excludes Non-Minority Women-Owned DBEs from Participation Goals

  • Posted by Ellie Perka
  • On June 2, 2017
A drastic change has been implemented by the Washington State Department of Transportation (“WSDOT”) to the Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (“DBE”) Program in Washington.  Effective June 1, 2017, WSDOT has implemented a “waiver” to exclude women-owned DBEs[i] from qualifying toward Condition of Award (“COA”) Goals on federally-funded projects.  This move is significant.  It will likely result […]

A New AAA Study Confirms that Arbitration is Faster to Resolution Than Court – And the Difference Can be Assessed Monetarily

  • Posted by John P. Ahlers
  • On June 1, 2017
There has been a perception among some litigators that arbitration is more expensive than court due to several factors.  Among them: The “upfront” costs are higher in that filing fees for arbitration exceed those in court.  Arbitrators are paid, whether hourly or a flat rate, and the three arbitration panels can become very expensive. Some […]

General Construction v. Grant County PUD: Chalkboard Notice is Invalid and Engineer Cannot Waive Notice Requirements

  • Posted by Brett M. Hill
  • On May 30, 2017
I previously posted a blog about the General Construction v. Grant County PUD case and the Court of Appeals’ rulings regarding notice and claim procedures.[i]  The General Construction case is also noteworthy for two other issues that were raised in that case.[ii]  The first issue involved whether a contractual written notice requirement is satisfied when […]