The Massachusetts Appeals Court recently upheld a trial court’s award of damages to a subcontractor in spite of a “no damages for delay clause” in the subcontract.On a public construction project, the subcontractor entered into a subcontract that contained a clause making extensions of time the exclusive remedy for delays to the subcontractor. The project […]...
As a general rule, parties to private contracts are afforded wide latitude to dictate and negotiate the terms as they see fit. While this notion of “freedom of contract” is an entrenched tradition within American law it is not without its limitations. The Prompt Pay Act, enacted in 2010, is one such limitation that every […]...
Companies operating or conducting business in Massachusetts are aware of an all-too-familiar statute, Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 93A. This statute provides individual consumers and businesses a right to bring legal action if they are harmed by an unfair business practice. The statute eloquently, although perhaps ambiguously, states that a violation shall exist when a company […]...
Unlike Massachusetts residential leases, under which a landlord is required by law to mitigate its damages, commercial lease provisions are more flexible and often contain a so-called “acceleration clause.” An acceleration clause, in its most basic form, addresses whether a landlord may accelerate rent (i.e. demand all of the rent that is remaining due under […]...
Massachusetts Court of Appeals recently affirmed the legal validity of a condo’s bylaws requiring the consent of eighty percent (80%) of unit owners as a prerequisite for owner standing in lawsuits against the trustees of the condominium’s board. The bylaw in question made it functionally impossible for unit owners to sue the trustees as, by […]...
A recent Massachusetts Bankruptcy Court decision should serve as a clear reminder to business owners that, in order to enjoy the benefits that limited liability entities afford, one must respect established corporate formalities and comport business accordingly. Briefly, in In Re: Cameron Construction & Roofing Co., Inc. the Bankruptcy Court held that the assets of […]...
Mayor Walsh’s administration recently proposed a new bill aimed at limiting the available reasons to evict a residential tenant. The proposal, known as the “Jim Brooks Community Stabilization Act,” would eliminate no-fault evictions in many instances, a common practice used to remove tenants without listing a violation. Proponents of the act claim that it is […]...
Most construction project owners require general contractors to provide periodic lien waivers from subcontractors and material suppliers to verify they received payment. This is generally a good thing, as it helps ensure payment is flowing down to the proper parties. Lien waivers, however, can become the source of conflict when parties can’t agree on their […]...
In Aggregate Industries – Northeast Region, Inc. v. Hugo Key & Sons, Inc., 90 Mass.App.Ct. 146 (2016), the Massachusetts Appeals Court ruled in favor of Strang Scott’s position, reversing part of the trial court’s earlier decision. The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (“SJC”) recently declined to further review the case. As such, the Appeals Court’s decision […]...
In the matter of City of Rochester v. Marcel Payeur et al., the New Hampshire Supreme Court had occasion to consider whether the common law doctrine of Nullum Tempus Occurit Regi (literally “time does not run against the king”) tolled the the statute of limitations against breach of contract claims against private entities filed by […]...