Georgia previously banned indemnity agreements in construction related contracts to the extent they required one party to indemnify another for that party’s sole negligence. On April 26, 2016, Georgia Governor Nathan Deal signed legislation that voids most indemnification and hold harmless agreements in contracts for, or collateral to, engineering, architectural or land surveying services. The new law (effective July 1, 2016), however, still … Read More
Local Hire? So long, farewell, auf Wiedersehen, good night . . .
On March 10, less than two months after Mayor Megan Berry imposed requirements implementing Charter Amendment 3, a/k/a Nashville’s local hire law, Governor Haslam signed a bill voiding the amendment. Accordingly, Metro Nashville believes the measure is dead, interpreting the bill to prohibit Metro from implementing Charter Amendment 3 and the rules and regulations imposed by Mayor Barry earlier this year. … Read More
More Than Just a Threshold: Compliance with building codes
So many times, construction industry participants view compliance with the applicable codes or standards as satisfaction of the participant’s duty of care – or evidence by itself that the participant was not negligent in performance of its design and/or construction duties. However, the Tennessee Court of Appeals recently clarified, in a dispute over an allegedly dangerous threshold in a residence, … Read More
New Pay Transparency Rule for Federal Contractors
Does your company have a policy that prevents your employees from discussing or disclosing their own pay or the pay of their co-workers? If you are a federal contractor or subcontractor, you better be aware of the new pay transparency rule that takes effect on January 11, 2016. This new rule comes from the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs … Read More
EPA: There’s a hole in my bucket
In May, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued the “Waters of the United States” rule, which expanded the scope of federal regulation over water and land use. Thirteen states joined together in a lawsuit filed in North Dakota asserting the new rule threatened state sovereignty because EPA claimed jurisdiction over wetlands and waters that were subject to state regulation and … Read More
Employee or Independent Contractor?
Is the person working for your business an employee or independent contractor? It is an age-old question that could be costly for your business, if not handled correctly. In July, the United States Department of Labor (“DOL”) issued Administrator’s Interpretation No. 2015-1, which provided updated guidance on the misclassification of employees as independent contractors under the Fair Labor Standards Act … Read More
New OSHA Rule for Confined Spaces in Construction
Earlier this year, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) added a new rule to provide increased protections to construction workers working in confined spaces on construction projects. Confined spaces are things such as bins, pits, manholes, crawl spaces, sewers, HVAC ducts, tanks, etc. The new confined spaces standards went into effect on August 3, 2015. Although currently in effect, OSHA … Read More
Bill Filed to Invalidate Nashville Charter Amendment
#VoteNoon3. In July and August, Twitter was abuzz as Nashville’s construction community actively campaigned against Charter Amendment 3. The proposed amendment sought to require contractors to assign at least 40% of work hours on Metro construction projects of at least $100,000 to employees who reside within Davidson County. Contractors against the amendment noted the shortage of skilled workers that exists … Read More
New Executive Order Establishes Paid Sick Leave for Federal Contractor Employees
On Labor Day last week, President Barack Obama signed an Executive Order establishing paid sick leave for employees of Federal contractors. Under this Executive Order, certain Federal contractors will be required to provide to their employees up to 7 days of paid sick leave per year. Federal contractors performing procurement contracts for services or construction will be required to follow this … Read More
Initial Here: Arbitration Clauses & Residential Construction in Tennessee
Initial Here: Tennessee’s Unique Requirement for Arbitration Clauses Concerning Residential Construction The Tennessee Arbitration Act (“TAA”), which is found at Tenn. Code Ann. § 29‑5‑301, et seq., contains a unique provision concerning arbitration provisions related to residential construction. Specifically, Tenn. Code Ann. § 29‑5‑302(a) provides as follows: A written agreement to submit any existing controversy to arbitration or a provision in a … Read More