Dallas Austin

In landmark legislation that seeks to reverse over 100 years of Texas case-law, the 2021 Texas Legislature passed CSSB 219 which relieves construction contractors from having responsibility for defects caused by design professionals.  The Bill states, “A contractor is not responsible for the consequences of design defect in and may not warranty the accuracy, adequacy, sufficiency, or suitability of plans, specifications, or other design documents provided to the contractor…” The Bill also specifically prohibits the responsibility for the design of a project to be shifted from the design

The arbitration process is one that is commonly encouraged as a means to resolve disputes. It is touted as being less expensive and quicker than litigating in court and presided over by arbitrators who are experts in the area of law governing the dispute. Texas law favors arbitration.  However, a party seeking to compel another to arbitration must establish the existence of an agreement to arbitrate and show that the claims asserted fall within the scope of that agreement. As the Mainthia Technologies, Inc. v. Recruiting Force, LLC case out of the Third Court of Appeals shows, it is not enoug

The numbers are jaw-dropping. Steel mill prices have increased nearly 25% over the past 3 months.  Softwood lumber prices have increased nearly 100% over the past 12 months.  Manufacturers and suppliers have started increasing inventories of raw materials to moderate future price shocks, further constraining supply and increasing prices. Whether the increases in construction materials are due to disruptions in the supply chain arising from the COVID-19 pandemic, the blockage of the Suez Canal, or old-fashioned price gauging, performing a fixed price contract when material prices surge can le

If you have not heard the term “smart contract” before, go ahead and add it to your list of technology buzzwords. In a similar vein to the technologies discussed in our recent blog on cryptocurrency, this is an emerging technology that is a sort of self-executing contract poised to increase overall project efficiency by cutting out the “middle man” (i.e., humans) upon completion of certain conditions. Before getting into more detail, perhaps the most important question is why should you care about smart contracts? Construction is an ever-changing, competitive industry whose players are

Can a policyholder sue its insurance company for negligently settling a claim when there is no judgment or settlement in excess of the policy limit? The short answer, based on the Supreme Court of Texas’s ruling in In Re Farmers Texas County Mutual Insurance Company, Realtor on April 23, 2021, is no. In In Re Farmers, Gary Gibson sued Cassandra Longoria, the policyholder, for personal injury and property damages resulting from a car accident that Longoria caused. Longoria’s insurance company, Farmers, hired an attorney to defend her in the lawsuit. Before trial, the case settled for $350,0

The lunar landscape may seem like an appealing change of scenery after 14 long months of the COVID-19 pandemic.  But whether you are embarking on a Space X rocket, Southwest jet, or the elevator of a place of business, are vaccine passports the new norm?  Can businesses require them? 1.    What is a vaccine passport? A vaccine passport is proof that a person has been immunized against COVID-19. It could be in the form of a smartphone app or a written certificate. The idea of a vaccine passport is not new. It was used in a similar sense over a hundred years ago with the plague and smallpox.

This blog marks our 100th since the COVID-19 pandemic was declared in March 2020.  What began as our quarantine project—reviewing and posting countless city and county face covering and stay-at-home orders to help our clients navigate the complex web of requirements—has somehow morphed into a series of articles about the legal, practical and ethical ramifications of operating a business or just surviving through a modern-day pandemic. Looking back over the last 100 blogs, it is clear life has changed dramatically since our first blog. When the COVID pandemic was in its viral infancy, dete