By Steven J. O’Neill The February 2015 NARI Legal Corner blog post titled, Build a Record You’ll Be Proud Of, addressed the importance of recordkeeping for contractors and provided practical guidelines for creating project records. It showed that the successful management of construction projects requires proper management of a company’s records and other “information assets.” Information … Continue reading
Filed under Legal Corner …
Considerations for Instituting a Mandatory Arbitration Clause
The Federal Arbitration Act (“FAA”) was enacted by Congress in 1925 as a means to ensure that otherwise valid arbitration agreements were enforced by the courts. At the time, courts were fairly hostile to the idea of relinquishing their jurisdiction over legal disputes brought before them. Over time, however, the notion of judicial economy, the … Continue reading
Build a Record That You’ll Be Proud Of
The management of construction projects involves the management of information. Frequently, decisions need to be made on-the-fly, before the written information necessary to document the decision is available. Under time pressure and with no reliable systems in place, project documentation (building a record) is regularly neglected. Unfortunately, a poorly built record can have serious negative … Continue reading
Selling Your Business: Getting from Here to There
Legal expert and NARI member Bryant H. Byrnes, Esq. continues his column on tips and techniques to prepare your business for sale at retirement. In my last article, I discussed the need to have a viable business to place on the market for sale. Shining It Up. Like the sale of a home, first impressions … Continue reading
OSHA is knocking at my door…what do I do? Part 2
Contractors typically want to know why they have been singled out for an OSHA inspection. Inspections can be motivated by on-site circumstances, or they can be scheduled pursuant to one of OSHA’s special emphasis programs. Catastrophic Accident or Death. If an employee dies at your job site or is injured and sent to the hospital, … Continue reading
Legal Implications of Construction Defect Claims
Every remodeling contractor believes that the work they do will never be found to have any problems. Even if one arises, more often than not, the strong relationship that most contractors create with their clients helps to smooth out any rough spots which may pop up during or after a project. But when a problem … Continue reading
OSHA is knocking at my door…what do I do? by Geoffrey S. Trotier,Labor and Employment Law Section at von Briesen, s.c
It’s a Monday morning at your job site. Just like any other Monday. Traffic was annoying, but tolerable. You only had one no call/no show. Just an average day…until someone in a grey OSHA Polo shirt with a clipboard shows up. This is why people hate Mondays. What should I do? 1. Wait for your … Continue reading
Preparing your business for sale at retirement
In preparing to sell a business—whether retirement is imminent or years away—the main issue is making sure that you still have a viable business to put on the market at the time of retirement. This topic is vast, but let’s start by covering the front-end basics: form of business entity, maintaining the business, regulatory compliance … Continue reading
Do I have to pay overtime?
Many employers believe that simply by paying their employees a salary they are relieved from overtime obligations. To the contrary, there are several factors that determine whether an employee is exempt from overtime pay. Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, an exempt employee must meet the salary basis test and the primary job duties test. … Continue reading
How to get paid on an overdue bill
A reality of doing business is that, at some point, you’ll have a customer who can’t or won’t pay their bill. Which approach is best depends on the situation, the customer and your overall goals. A contractor’s first and best option is a construction (mechanic’s) lien. The best way to protect yourself is to make … Continue reading
