Journal of Legal Affairs and Dispute Resolution in Engineering and Construction

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May 2012

Volume 4, Issue 2, pp. 23-54

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Holding Homebuilders Liable for Personal Injury and Property Damage Caused by Defective Material: Chinese Drywall Case

Mehmet Emre Bayraktar, A.M.ASCE, Clayton R. Owens, and Farrukh Arif, S.M.ASCE

J. Leg. Aff. Dispute Resolut. Eng. Constr. 4, 23 (2012); http://dx.doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)LA.1943-4170.0000086 (8 pages)

Online Publication Date: 5 August 2011

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Faced with the stark reality that Chinese drywall manufacturers might not respond to American judgments, some homeowners affected by Chinese drywall excluded them from their lawsuits. Instead, these homeowners sought redress exclusively from homebuilders. This paper focuses on this unique approach of suing only the homebuilder that built the home with defective Chinese drywall and proposes that homeowners be given the opportunity to utilize the same legal theories available to other product consumers. This paper provides relevant background information on the subject matter and presents four common legal theories homeowners can use against homebuilders. The paper provides existing law for each legal theory and analogous case law involving other defective construction materials. Finally, in the conclusions section, the paper provides a discussion on why homeowners should sue homebuilders exclusively and how the courts should respond to the Chinese drywall problem.

Measured-Mile Principles

William Ibbs, M.ASCE

J. Leg. Aff. Dispute Resolut. Eng. Constr. 4, 31 (2012); http://dx.doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)LA.1943-4170.0000087 (9 pages)

Online Publication Date: 5 September 2011

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Change is any addition, deletion, or revision to the general scope of a contract. It may cause an adjustment to the contract price or contract time of a design or construction project. Many disputes arise out of change, and successful resolution of those disputes requires that three elements be evaluated: liability, causation, and resultant injury (damages). One specific type of damage that is frequently alleged on changed projects is loss of labor productivity. One way to evaluate and quantify loss of labor productivity damages is through use of the measured-mile technique. Problems exist with the measured-mile approach, however, because the guidelines for developing and applying it are unclear. Based on a review and synthesis of project management literature and court and appeal board decisions, this paper presents guidelines for development and application of the measured-mile methodology. The intent is to help contractors, owners, consultants, and other parties step through a logical process for preparing and presenting a credible measured-mile analysis.

Contract Administration Guidelines for U.S. Contractors Working under World Bank–Funded Projects

Salwa A. Fawzy and Islam H. El-adaway

J. Leg. Aff. Dispute Resolut. Eng. Constr. 4, 40 (2012); http://dx.doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)LA.1943-4170.0000088 (11 pages)

Online Publication Date: 7 October 2011

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Today’s globalized construction industry requires more integration and collaboration between various multinational and multicultural stakeholders. Many U.S. contractors are involved in large-scale projects that are funded in whole or in part by the World Bank. These projects are managed through the Standard Bidding Documents for Procurement of Works (SBDW). The Conditions of Contract included in the SBDW (i.e., WB contract) are based extensively on the Conditions of Contract for Construction published by the International Federation of Consulting Engineers (FIDIC). Most of the U.S. contractors are more familiar with the families of contracts issued by the American Institute of Architects Conditions of Contract (namely, the A201) and are less familiar with the FIDIC Conditions of Contract. This paper presents contract administration guidelines for U.S. contractors working under World Bank–funded projects. The authors highlight the WB contract’s fundamental administrative issues, including the role of the Bank, the responsibilities of the engineer, commencement, instructions, approvals, delays and extension of time, acceleration, and payment provisions. For each guideline, the authors compare the associated SBDW provisions with their respective ones under the FIDIC’s editions issued in 1987 and 1999. It is perceived that such in-depth analysis will help U.S. contractors better understand the evolution of the philosophy governing the development of SBDW contracts and consequently help them better manage their associated projects.
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Some Principles Applied to DSC Claims

H. Randolph Thomas, F.ASCE

J. Leg. Aff. Dispute Resolut. Eng. Constr. 4, 51 (2012); http://dx.doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)LA.1943-4170.0000080 (4 pages)

Online Publication Date: 16 April 2012

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