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Supreme Court Eliminates Judicial 'Chevron' Deference to Federal Agency Statutory Interpretations

July 31, 2024 — Jane C. Luxton - Lewis Brisbois
Washington, D.C. (July 1, 2024) – In a much-anticipated decision, on June 28, 2024, the Supreme Court issued a sweeping opinion “overrul[ing]” a 40-year old precedent that required judges to defer to federal agency interpretations of their governing statutes when those laws were ambiguous or silent. Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo, et al. No. 22-451 (2024), overruling Chevron U.S.A., Inc. v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc., 467 U.S. 837 (1984). The decision means that courts will no longer give special weight to an agency’s view of the scope of its regulatory powers but must apply independent judgment in deciding “whether an agency has acted within its statutory authority.” Loper Bright, slip op. at 35. Taking pains to explain that the new ruling would not allow for reversals of cases previously decided under the Chevron doctrine, the Court left no doubt that, in the words of Justice Neil Gorsuch, “[t]oday, the Court places a tombstone on Chevron no one can miss.” Id., Gorsuch Concurring Opinion at 1. Writing for a 6-2 majority, Chief Justice Roberts forcefully condemned the Chevron-based principle that courts should defer to a federal agency’s interpretation of the scope of its legal authority, rejecting the concept that agencies have any special expertise in statutory interpretation, a field reserved to the courts, not the executive branch, under Article III of the Constitution and the Administrative Procedure Act, 5 U.S.C. § 551 et seq. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Jane C. Luxton, Lewis Brisbois
Ms. Luxton may be contacted at Jane.Luxton@lewisbrisbois.com

Dispute Over Amount Insured Owes Public Adjuster Resolved

January 14, 2025 — Tred R. Eyerly - Insurance Law Hawaii
The court addressed a dispute over fees that the insureds allegedly owed the public adjuster. Public' Adjuster's, LLC v. Mark Gottesdiener & Co., et al., 2024 Conn. Super. LEXIS 2352 (Conn. Super. Ct. Nov. 6. 2024). The insureds owned an apartment building that was substantially damaged by a fire. The building was insured by Quincy Mutual Group. The insureds signed a Public Adjuster Employment Contract with The Public's Adjuster, LLC (Adjuster). The contract authorized Adjuster to negotiate the reimbursable damages with Quincy on the insureds' behalf. Adjuster was to recover 8 1/2% of any amounts received by the insureds. Because of the extent of the fire damage, the work of negotiating a settlement with Quincy proved to be complex. Adjuster meticulously prepared several detained written estimates to by submitted to Quincy. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Tred R. Eyerly, Damon Key Leong Kupchak Hastert
Mr. Eyerly may be contacted at te@hawaiilawyer.com

Colorado Court of Appeals’ Ruling Highlights Dangers of Excessive Public Works Claims

August 26, 2024 — David M. McLain – Colorado Construction Litigation
In the case of Ralph L. Wadsworth Construction Company, LLC v. Regional Rail Partners (2024 COA 78), the Colorado Court of Appeals reviewed a complex contract dispute related to the design and construction of a transit rail line. The project, commissioned by the Regional Transportation District (“RTD”), involved a collaboration between Regional Rail Partners and Ralph L. Wadsworth Construction Company (“Wadsworth”) to build the North Metro Rail Line between Denver Union Station and Thornton. Key Facts:

Contracts and Payments: Regional Rail Partners contracted with Wadsworth to perform specific construction tasks with a total contract value of $60,210,783. By the time of the trial, Regional Rail had paid almost $58 million of this amount.
Disputes and Delays: The project faced numerous delays and disputes, leading to Wadsworth claiming significant financial damages attributed to these disruptions. In April 2018, Wadsworth’s expert estimated that Regional Rail owed them $12,408,496.60.

Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of David McLain, Higgins, Hopkins, McLain & Roswell, LLC
Mr. McLain may be contacted at mclain@hhmrlaw.com

Viva La France! 2024 Summer Olympics Construction Features Sustainable Design, Including, Simply Not Building at All

August 26, 2024 — Garret Murai - California Construction Law Blog
If you’re like me and many others you’ve probably been watching the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, France. We were in Paris last year and we passed the construction site of the Aquatics Centre, one of only three new permanent facilities that was constructed for this year’s Olympics. On a side note, Parisian Uber drivers are some of the most aggressive drivers I’ve seen, replete with honking, hand gestures, and cursing at other drivers and pedestrians in, of course, French. Putain! In recent history, Olympic construction costs have skyrocketed, often vastly exceeding the planned budgets of the host cities, and, in recent years, has caused even some host city hopefuls to reconsider whether to even throwing their hats in the ring. The 2020/2021Summer Olympics in Tokyo, for example, had an original budget of $7.5 billion. The actual cost was over $13 billion and, depending on what beans you count, may have been over twice that! Paris seeks to change all of this. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Garret Murai, Nomos LLP
Mr. Murai may be contacted at gmurai@nomosllp.com

Kahana Feld Named to the Orange County Register 2024 Top Workplaces List

January 14, 2025 — Linda Carter - Kahana Feld
ORANGE COUNTY – Dec. 31, 2024 – Kahana Feld is pleased to announce that the firm has been named a 2024 Top Workplace by the Orange County Register. This is the second year in a row that Kahana Feld has been named to the Orange County Top Workplaces list. The Top Workplaces list is based solely on employee feedback gathered through a third-party survey. The confidential survey uniquely measures the employee experience and its component themes, including employees feeling Respected & Supported, Enabled to Grow, and Empowered to Execute. “Inclusion on this list is a testament to Kahana Feld’s dedication to employee satisfaction,” said Firmwide Managing Partner Amir Kahana. “Having a positive and supportive culture has always been a top priority for us, and it will continue to be a driving force in our growth and success.” Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Linda Carter, Kahana Feld
Ms. Carter may be contacted at lcarter@kahanafeld.com

GRSM Attorneys Selected to 2024 Super Lawyers and Rising Stars Lists

January 14, 2025 — Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani
Super Lawyers® has released its 2024 attorney lists across various regions of the United States. This year, 169 Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani attorneys have been selected, with 51 named to Super Lawyers and 118 named to Rising Stars. *For attorneys licensed to practice in New Jersey: No aspect of this advertisement has been approved by the Supreme Court of New Jersey. Please visit the Super Lawyers Selection Process for a detailed description of the Super Lawyers and Rising Stars selection methodology. The selections are a result of independent research by the team at Super Lawyers® to determine no more than the top five percent of legal professionals in each geographic region. The research team selects no more than two and a half percent of the lawyers in each geographic region to the Rising Stars list. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani

AI AEC Show: Augmenta Gives Designers Superpowers

December 31, 2024 — Aarni Heiskanen - AEC Business
In this episode of the AI AEC Show, host Aarni Heiskanen interviews Aaron Szymanski and Francesco Iorio, the visionary founders of Augmenta, to explore how generative AI is revolutionizing design. Augmenta’s platform gives designers superpowers by automating complex workflows, doubling productivity, and enabling better, faster decision-making. Discover the fascinating origin story of Augmenta, born from the intersection of industrial design frustration and cutting-edge AI research. Aaron and Francesco share how their backgrounds in manufacturing, design, and technology led them to tackle inefficiencies in the construction industry—starting with electrical raceway design. They reveal how their AI-powered tools save time and optimize designs for cost, sustainability, and constructability. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Aarni Heiskanen, AEC Business
Mr. Heiskanen may be contacted at aec-business@aepartners.fi

Newark Trial Team Secures Affirmance of ‘No Cause’ Verdict for Nationwide Housing Manager & Developer

January 07, 2025 — Lewis Brisbois Newsroom
Newark, N.J. (December 30, 2024) - Newark Partner Afsha Noran and Managing Partner Colin Hackett recently obtained a ruling by a New Jersey Appellate Division panel affirming a unanimous "no cause" defense verdict obtained on behalf of a nationwide housing developer and manager. In this case, the plaintiff and her two minor children brought suit against the firm's client. They appealed a unanimous no-cause jury verdict rendered in May 2023 that found the defendants not liable for mold exposure in their apartment. The plaintiffs argued that several trial errors, including improper jury instructions, a confusing verdict sheet, and prejudicial remarks by defense counsel led to an unjust result. However, the appellate court affirmed the trial court's decision, concluding that there was no miscarriage of justice and that the trial court properly exercised its discretion in handling the case. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Lewis Brisbois

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