Understanding the Recent Florida Mediation Trends An important aspect of trying to settle a dispute is the flexibility (or lack thereof) of the mediation participants. No matter how good the attorneys and mediator are, if the parties are unwilling to compromise, the mediation process will be unsuccessful.  Sometimes a good settlement may look different (even...Read More

Every attorney representing a plaintiff (this mediator included) has told a defendant that, in addition to the claim amount, the plaintiff is demanding its attorney’s fees and costs in the litigation. As parties and attorneys know all too well, the costs of litigation, particularly in a complex, multi-party construction defect litigation, can be significant, sometimes...Read More

The Importance of Managing Clients Mediation Expectations The importance of managing client expectations before mediation cannot be understated. In the claimant’s mind, the defendant should pay everything (principal, interest, fees, and costs) while the defendant believes it should pay far less. Convincing either on the day of mediation to fundamentally change that perspective is nearly...Read More

What You Need to know for Mediation Day Planning If a fact or legal position is important, the other side should not be learning about it for the first time at mediation. Rarely if ever in this mediator’s experience has a party changed their position 180 degrees based upon the other side’s revelation of something...Read More

Understanding a Florida Mediator’s Role Equally important to the merits of a case is how that information will be communicated to the opposing side and the mediator’s role in the process. There are some things better left unsaid during the open session(s) that should be communicated to the opposing side by the mediator in private....Read More

Understanding Florida Bad Faith Claims Where there is or may be insurance coverage for a claim, perhaps one of the most important buttons to push is bad faith. Pre-mediation demands within policy limits trigger potential bad faith claims against an insurer. An insurer’s failure to settle a third-party claim against an insured contractor may amount...Read More

With multi-party construction defect claims, it becomes imperative for the claimant to fully understand each defendant’s scope of work and how it may have contributed to the damages sought. This becomes critically important where, for example, there has been different contractors involved with different subcontractors (perhaps even for the same trades), such as where an...Read More

Understanding Allocation of Construction Damages Between the Parties While it is imperative that the claimant fully understand its damages—not only what it is claiming, but what the law supports—equally if not more important is understanding where those damages may be apportioned between the parties. If the claimant presents a reasonable apportionment of damages in advance...Read More

Claims arising during the contractor’s ongoing operations may not be covered due to typical CGL exclusions, whereas there may be coverage for claims occurring after project completion where the contractor has completed operations coverage and the work was performed through a subcontractor. Additional insured (AI) status is another factor to consider. Contractors are routinely required...Read More

Help Understanding the Construction Project Insurance Program A Claimant should identify early on applicable policies of insurance and understand the policy terms, exclusions, and coverage limits. Where a project has an insurance program that is owner-controlled (OCIP) or contractor-controlled (CCIP), one policy will cover most of the parties working through or under the general contractor....Read More