Blogs

Construction

Ever Wonder Whether Your Local Legislators, Officers or Officials Have Skin in the Game?

With all the buzz about Congressional ethics investigations and the kinks being worked out of the reformed Virginia General Assembly and Senate ethics rules, I thought it might be an appropriate time to reflect on the rules that govern our local officials here in Virginia. On this side of the river, conflicts of interests, prohibited…

August 4, 2010

Construction

New Financial Reforms to Change Real Estate Market?

It has been widely reported that Northrop Grumman has chosen a building located in the Fairview Park area of Fairfax County to relocate approximately 300 employees from Los Angeles. Certainly this decision bodes well for the Northern Virginia region as a whole, as proximity to Washington, D.C., the Pentagon and the Northern Virginia technology centers…

July 30, 2010

Construction

Round 2 – Builder Claim for Coverage In Chinese Drywall Survives Motion

Frequent readers will know that we have talked about Chinese drywall litigation and issues quite a bit here. One of the ugliest cases was a builder who proactively repaired drywall issues having its initial complaint against its insurers who did not provide a defense thrown out on motion to dismiss. The court originally found that…

July 22, 2010

Construction

ABC-VA Headquarters: Aiming for LEED Gold

Associated Builders & Contractors Virginia Chapter (ABC-VA) has officially opened its quite impressive new headquarters location. The building project was managed by J.J. McCarthy as owner’s representative, head of its green building committee. The project featured numerous ABC member contractors and design professionals, including BE&K Building Group as general contractor and Morgan Gick McBeath &…

July 20, 2010

Construction

Virginia Transportation Stimulus Spending: Dead Last and Slow as Molasses

A recent blog post at ENR reviewed recent reports on the spending of transportation related stimulus funding. The post analyzed a report by the House Transporation and Infrastructure Committee detailing where all the states stand on stimulus spending. Readers may recall that back in March we discussed Virginia’s lagging in spending its stimulus dollars. Simply…

July 15, 2010

Construction

Part II – Review of your Form Purchase Agreement

Part II – Review of your Form Purchase Agreement In this Part II, we continue our review of some important items to review in your form purchase and sale agreements.

July 12, 2010

Construction

What Does Arlington and the City of Guelph Have in Common? Peter Garforth.

I attended the meeting last Wednesday night regarding the impact of Arlington County’s Community Energy Plan on the Arlington development community, held by the County’s lead consultant, Peter Garforth, of Garforth International, Jay Fissette, the Chairman of the Arlington County Board, and numerous industry representatives. I initially blogged about this several months ago (see the…

July 7, 2010

Construction

Impacting Negotiations: From Round Tables to Soft Chairs

Law and negotiation go hand in hand and understanding the psychology surrounding negotiation is critical to successfully representing clients. I have long been fascinated by the wrangling of the parties over the shape of the table in discussions to negotiate the end of the Viet Nam war. As stated eloquently in Time Magazine: For ten…

July 6, 2010

Construction

Review your form Purchase Agreement

Part I – Builders Review of Purchase Agreement Virginia has experienced several years now of a declining residential real estate market, marked by periods of low sales, high inventory and declining prices. Note that recently the prices and inventory have stabilized, but certainly activity has slowed again now that the federal tax credits for homebuyers…

June 29, 2010

Construction

Lead Paint Updated: Commercial Buildings, Clearance Testing, and Chance to Comment

As we originally posted on April 30, EPA has issued notice that its recent lead paint regulations may be changing. Specifically, EPA published a proposed rule on May 6 providing for clarifications and changes in clearance testing. For commercial contractors thinking they were spared from worrying about lead paint regulation, EPA also issued an advance…

June 28, 2010