Bill Wilson | Construction Law Zone In a case of first impression in Massachusetts, Lessard v. R.C. Havens & Sons, Inc., 104 Mass. App. Ct. 572 (2024), the Appellate Court confirmed that construction defects, without more, do not constitute property damage within the meaning of a commercial general liability policy (CGL). In Lessard, the homeowners filed suit against… Continue reading Massachusetts Appellate Court Confirms Construction Defects are Not Covered Under Commercial General Liability Policies
Category: Commercial General Liability Policy
US Appeals Court Upholds No CGL Coverage for General Contractor for Subcontractor’s Defective Work
John Hugo, Kelly Martin Malone and Michael Robertson | MG+M The Law Firm On November 8, 2024, the US Court of Appeals for the First Circuit (the Court) issued a decision in the matter of Admiral Insurance Company, et al. v. Tocci Building Corporation, et al., No. 22-1462 (1st Cir. 2024). The appeal concerned a dispute… Continue reading US Appeals Court Upholds No CGL Coverage for General Contractor for Subcontractor’s Defective Work
Professional Services Exclusion in GL Policy Issued to Property Inspector Barred Claims for Injuries Resulting from Inspector’s Failure to Replace Floor Panel
David Fagnilli | Marshall Dennehey The plaintiff was a real estate agent who was injured when she fell through an open inspection panel in the floor of a bathroom at a house that she had listed. She sued the property inspector who had been there before her, alleging that he had opened the floor to… Continue reading Professional Services Exclusion in GL Policy Issued to Property Inspector Barred Claims for Injuries Resulting from Inspector’s Failure to Replace Floor Panel
Does a Sagging Floor Constitute a “Collapse”? Court Finds Ambiguity in “Collapse.”
Joshua Tumen and Paul Ferland | The Property Insurance Law Observer In Life Skills, Inc. v. Harleysville Insurance Company, 2024 WL 3792261 (D. Mass. 2024), the District Court of Massachusetts found that “collapse” provisions within a commercial property policy were ambiguous where a floor merely sagged without completely falling to the ground. Background The plaintiff-insured provided… Continue reading Does a Sagging Floor Constitute a “Collapse”? Court Finds Ambiguity in “Collapse.”
Which Policy Covers That? Timing Considerations When Placing CGL Carriers On Notice Of A Construction Defect Claim
E. Samuel Crecelius III | Cokinos For a construction contractor, receiving notice of a claim for damages associated with the contractor’s work can be a daunting prospect. Particularly if the contractor’s first notice of the claim is a lawsuit naming the contractor as a defendant. Fortunately, most contractors do (and all contractors should) maintain commercial general… Continue reading Which Policy Covers That? Timing Considerations When Placing CGL Carriers On Notice Of A Construction Defect Claim