The Idaho Supreme Court recently determined in Idaho Power Company v. New Energy Two, LLC, No. 40882-2013 (Idaho June 17, 2014), that the Idaho Public Utilities Commission has jurisdiction to interpret or enforce contracts when given the authority by the parties. In May 2010, IPC and the defendants entered into two energy contracts that were to be completed by a date certain. In advance of the operational dates, the defendants notified IPC of events they claimed were force majeure. Markedly, the defendants’ claim was that the decision-making process of the PUC itself, or the alleged lack thereof, was the force majeure event causing lenders to be “unwilling to lend in Idaho pending the outcome” of the PUC proceedings. IPC filed petitions with the PUC seeking a ruling that there was no force majeure event(s), and that IPC could terminate the contracts. The defendants filed a motion to dismiss that was denied, and the Idaho Supreme Court heard the issue on a permissive appeal.
Beware of LEED Minimum Program Requirements
In my latest Daily Journal of Commerce Construction column, I discuss some the potential risks for project teams to consider when drafting construction agreements under the current version of the LEED building rating program (3.0). Version 3.0 provides for Minimum Program Requirements ("MPRs") which a project must comply with to be certified under the LEED
Lien Rights of Employee Benefit Plans Clarified in Washington
A question left open in Stoel Rives’ recent Washington lien law treatise relates to the lien rights of employee benefit plans. The rights granted in RCW 60.04.011(4) (where benefit plans are included in the definition of “furnishing labor”) were called into question by two Washington Supreme Court decisions barring employee benefit plans from pursuing lien-like
Lien Rights of Architects and Engineers
In my latest Daily Journal of Commerce Construction column, I discuss the construction lien rights for architects and engineers in Washington and Oregon. In these states, once construction lien rights have arisen the law requires further acts (such as sending notices to the project owner or recording formal notices within specific time frames) to keep
Heavy Fines for All: Working Without a Contractor’s License in California is Costly
I am surprised, and yet not surprised, to read about yet another subcontractor and general contractor that were cited for the subcontractor’s lack of a California contractor’s license. See "Another Subcontractor on Large Southern California Project Told To Halt Work, Fined for Not Having Contractors License" (May 13, 2014 notification by CSLB —
Do You Understand all that Insurance Jargon in Contract?
In my latest Daily Journal of Commerce Construction column, I discuss insurance jargon in contracts and use Commercial General Liability or “CGL” policies as an example. The terms “bodily injury,” “personal or advertising injury,” and “property damage” all have specific meanings in CGL policies. Since this language is not always intuitive, it is best to
Oregon’s New 5% Retention Rule May Force Unintended Consequences
In my latest Daily Journal of Commerce Construction column, I discuss Oregon’s new 5% retention rule. Parties negotiating construction contracts should stay mindful of how the new retention provisions may force changes to other contract and how such changes may affect all parties throughout construction of the project.
Read the full article at the Daily Journal
The Latest DIRT in California: Additional Mandatory Reporting for Excavators, Operators and Contractors?
Those that “dig in the dirt” are very familiar with the Damage Information Reporting Tool (DIRT), which was launched in 2003 by the Common Ground Alliance (CGA). Over the years California has enacted several statutes requiring anyone moving dirt to notify a regional notification center of the area of planned disturbance that may impact a subsurface
Contractors Still Have Time: Certain CA Energy-Related Regulations Delayed to July 1, 2014
Residential and non-residential contractors in California have been waiting for the new California energy-related regulations to be issued for the January 1, 2014 compliance deadline. Although many became effective on January 1, delays in the software performance compliance programs by the California Energy Commission required that additional time be provided for contractors to obtain and
Announcing a New Washington Lien Law Treatise
We are pleased to announce the publication of a new Stoel Rives Washington state lien law treatise. Written by construction law attorneys Karl Oles and Bart Reed, the treatise builds on two earlier works: Professor Brian A. Blum’s Mechanics’ and Construction Liens in Alaska, Oregon and Washington, and Michael F. Keyes Construction Lien