Articles

Authored by attorney Neil Lowenstein1 Like many states, North Carolina has “Little Miller” code provisions intended for the protection of those that furnish labor or materials for North Carolina public projects since those persons cannot claim claims of lien against the real property. It covers the construction, reconstruction, alteration or repair of any public building ...
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Authored by attorney Daniel R. Weckstein, Esq. Last week, Senator John McCain (R-Arizona) offered an amendment to the already controversial Keystone Pipeline Bill.  His amendment would repeal the Jones Act and its protections for the American shipbuilding and maritime industry.  Under the Jones Act, vessels used for coastwise trade in the United States must be ...
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Authored by attorney Anthony J. Mazzeo One of the most frustrating notices you can receive as a Government Contractor can come days after learning your company has won a contract award.  In the days or weeks after an award, it is possible you may receive a “stop work order” and be advised that a competitor ...
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Authored by attorney Casaundra Maimone It goes without saying that a contractor should carefully review all of the proposed terms and negotiate all of the final terms of a construction contract such that the provisions are best tailored to their role on the project.  Nonetheless, attentiveness to warranty terms is especially important due to the ...
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If you are a foreign owner doing business in the U.S. you should review the requirements by the Bureau of Economic Analysis/U.S. Department of Commerce (“BEA”). BEA is collecting data to measure foreign direct investments in the U.S., and they are doing so retroactively back to January 1, 2014. The BE-13 Survey form will have ...
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Authored by attorney Jay Rixey The U.S. Employee Benefits Security Administration recently announced updates to its model notices informing employees of their eligibility to continue health care coverage at the end of their employment through the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA).  The purpose of the changes is to include information related to the Affordable ...
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Authored by attorney Megan Caramore On September 11, 2014, the Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) announced a final rule with respect to new reporting requirements for fatalities and severe injuries.  Previously, the rule required only that employers report fatalities or hospitalizations of three or more workers.  The new rule, which takes ...
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Virginia law provides for a mechanic lien intended to insure payment to persons who supply labor or materials for construction projects. On first blush, the requirement is simple – to file the mechanic’s lien. But over the years judicial interpretations of the statutory provisions have made the requirements much more complex than that; and any ...
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A mechanic’s lien is a powerful tool to secure payment for construction work.  As discussed in the last article, however, there are technical requirements to prepare a mechanic’s lien.  Heads Up Sprinkler lost its mechanic’s lien after five years because it failed to include a statement that it “intended to claim the benefit of the ...
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Recall from Part I of the Primer on Virginia's Data Breach Law that your laptop has been stolen, and you have concluded there has been a breach of security under Virginia's data breach law.  You must now determine whom to notify, and this will depend on your relationship to the data.  Individuals or entities that ...
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Imagine that your laptop is stolen.  Since you conduct all your business on it, you struggle to remember the last time you backed up your data, and agonize at the prospect of rebuilding weeks, months, and possibly years of files.  As you contemplate the recovery of your business data, you should also think about whether ...
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Authored by attorney Casaundra M. Maimone Subcontractors should review proposed terms and negotiate final terms that are best suited to their role on the project.  One concern is the impact of clauses incorporated by reference that might involve scope of work, quality, payment and disputes. In government contacts many clause must be “flowed down” to ...
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Authored by attorney Patrick A. Genzler Electronic mail has become the de facto principal means of communication for most businesses today.  And, in most businesses, email is widely used by many employees to perform company business.  However, the ease with which we can communicate and transmit documents by email comes with certain risks, particularly when ...
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Authored by attorney Neil S. Lowenstein In a recently released decision (11/18/13, Metag Insast Ticaret A.S., ASBCA No. 58616), the Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals reaffirmed its earlier holding that performance evaluation disputes may constitute Contract Disputes Act (CDA) claims, if the contractor has sought a final decision, as being an appealable request for ...
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Authored by attorney Anne G. Bibeau A new law, Va. Code § 40.1-28.7:4, which went into effect on July 1, 2013, has caused confusion for Virginia employers.  The law provides that an "employer shall not … be required to release, communicate, or distribute to a third party any current or former employee's personal identifying information," ...
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Authored by attorney Anthony J. Mazzeo You’ve successfully been awarded a Multiple Award contract with a Federal Agency and have earned a “seat at the table” for the forthcoming Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity Task Order competitions.  We know that those Task Order Requests for Proposals require just as much effort on your part as the ...
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Violations of moving and hauling permits can be expensive for construction companies.  The local police usually consider the permit to be invalid if any of the requirements of the permit are violated.  In those cases, the police impose penalties based on the general weight limitations and not the weight established in the permit.  This can ...
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Authored by attorney Patrick A. Genzler Virtually all construction contracts and subcontracts contain an “indemnification” provision, which obligates one party to the agreement – the “indemnitor” -- to “indemnify” or to pay certain liabilities that the other party – called the “indemnitee” – may incur during the contracted work.  Indemnification agreements are one of the ...
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Authored by attorney Megan B. Caramore Under Virginia’s Workers’ Compensation Act, employers have certain obligations to their employees.  Below is a list of the basic information that every employer should keep in mind. An employer who regularly employs three or more full-time or part-time employees is required to purchase and maintain workers’ compensation insurance.  Employers ...
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Authored by attorney Michael L. Sterling In W.J. Schafer Associates, Inc. v. Cordant, Inc., 493 S.E. 2d 514 (Va. 1997) the court held a teaming agreement was unenforceable on the ground that “agreements to agree in the future” are “too vague and too indefinite to be enforced.” However, the case provided a "road map" of ...
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