A Breach Of Construction Agreement Claims Can Be Successfully Resolved

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Your company may have a claim for the material breach of a construction agreement if you are engaged in a dispute over compliance. A material breach of a construction agreement means that one of the parties within the agreement has failed to perform one or more terms of the agreement. In legal terms a breach is a broken commitment to do or not do one or more specific acts.

The courts generally determine the existence of a material breach by the following criteria:

• A failure to comply with an essential provision of the agreement, which was largely responsible for the non-breaching party to enter into the agreement
• Is the breach sufficient enough to remove or eliminate the non-breaching party’s purpose for entering into the agreement
• Has the breach impacted the matters that are of vital importance to the primary purposes of the agreement
• Has the non-breaching party received significantly less services, products, features or money than what the agreement providedIt can be said that a breach is a substantial failure to perform the agreement’s requirements so as to cause the purpose of the agreement to be neglected.

However, this criterion is very broad and it may appear to be vague, but the Von Esch Law Group has the expert skill and experience to identify how this criteria will or will not support your breach of construction agreement claims. This law firm has a history of successfully resolving disputes arising from breach of construction agreement claims. Not every claim is litigated; many are resolved by the skillful negotiation.

Realistically, many breaches are often the result of a misunderstanding or a misinterpretation of the construction agreement. However, equally as often, the skill of an experienced construction attorney is required to resolve a dispute that has progressed into a serious problem. This attorney can emphasize the meaning of the agreement and the consequences of a continuing the breach, and this often helps bring about a settlement.

The Von Esch Law Group can put the offending party in a position to remedy the breach as if the agreement was fulfilled. In some cases where this cannot be accomplished, money may compensate the non-breaching party. If necessary, the attorney can initiate litigation to compel the breaching party to fulfill their obligations as stated in the agreement. There is not always one apparent best solution, but an attorney with experience in successfully resolving breach of construction agreement claims will know the resolution that will serve you well.

For more information regarding Von Esch Law Group and their legal services, visit their website and Facebook page!

Tax Court Goes To Webster For Definition Of Construction – And Watch That NAICS Code

If you are involved in construction and reconstruction, you may get a better deal on your losses from rental real estate and beginning with 2013 avoid the Obamacare tax on gains from rental real estate.  But what exactly is construction and reconstruction?  The Tax Court had to look it up in the dicitionary.  Here’s the story.

Some Background

The stake in the heart of the tax shelter vampire provided by the Tax Reform Act of 1986 was Code Section 469 , which introduced the oxymoronic concept – passive activities.  Other sections of the Code, like those concerning S corporations discuss “passive income” – interest and dividends and the like, but such investment income is not the passive activity income that 469 refers to.  Passive activity income and more significantly loss comes from a trade or business activity in which you do not materially participate.  We are required to divide our trade or business income from proprietorships, partnerships and S Corporations into two buckets.  If the passive bucket is a net loss, the loss is suspended and carried forward to be used if there is passive income in the future or when the underlying activity is entirely disposed.

The rules about how you classify your activities and measure material participation are mind boggling in their complexity.  Don’t get me started.  There is one rule that created a lot of angst, though.  Rental activities are per se passive.  This was troubling to people in the real estate industry who might for example have rental losses on a development while making money on the sale of property.  So a special rule was created for people involved in real estate trades or businesses.  If you spend more than 750 hours per year in real estate trades or businesses and the amount of time that you spend in the real estate trades is greater than the amount of time you spending doing anything else, then the per se passive rental income rule does not apply to you.  Rental losses are not passive, if you materially participate in the related properties.

Not Easy For People With Day Jobs To Be Considered Real Estate Pros

For some reason, the IRS is particularly zealous in enforcing Code Section 469.  If you have substantial income and are posting losses from rental activities, you can put as many “I love Obama” signs on your lawn as you want and you still have a better than average chance of being challenged. At least that is my inference from the cases I read and some discussions with other practitioners.

The way the cases have broken, people with non-real estate day jobs who claim that they spend more time on their amateur landlord activity are almost always accused of having insufficient records of their time, “ballpark guestimates, a colorful term that the Tax Court seems to have reserved for 469 cases. Even in the cases where people have logs, they are often found to be improbable.   You don’t see “pants on fire” in the decisions, but you suspect the judges are whispering it under their breath.
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In Pennsylvania and beyond, teaching boys and men to prevent domestic violence

On a high school football field near Pittsburgh, an assistant coach tackled a topic unrelated to the upcoming game.

“One of the biggest components of being a man is how you treat females,” Kevin Murray told his players at Woodland Hills High. “We’d be doing you a very big disservice by not holding you accountable.”

At the jailhouse in High Point, North Carolina, a sterner version of that message is now given routinely to men detained for domestic-violence offenses and considered at risk of re-offending.

“We’re putting these guys on notice that domestic violence is not going to be tolerated here,” said Police Chief Marty Sumner. “The message is very clear: ‘We know who you are, we know what you’re doing. It has to stop.'”

The two programs target different audiences. But in the realm of domestic-violence prevention, where the record of success is spotty, they share a status as two of the nation’s most promising initiatives.

Coaching Boys Into Men is one of the flagship programs developed by Futures Without Violence, a nonprofit working to curb abuse of women and children. Thousands of high school coaches across the country, now joined by some middle school coaches, have received training in how to convey to their players the importance of treating young women with respect and avoiding abusive behavior.

The program has attracted the notice of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The federal agency funded a three-year evaluation, involving more than 2,000 high school athletes in Sacramento County, California, which found that participating players were more likely to intervene to stop abuse and less likely to perpetrate it.

High Point’s program — the Offender-Focused Domestic Violence Initiative — was conceived in 2009 based on an approach developed by David M. Kennedy, a professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York. While many programs focus on helping victims of domestic violence, High Point’s initiative targets the offender with a strategy of aggressive deterrence.

Since the program was fully implemented in 2012, the recidivism rate for domestic-violence offenders in High Point has been cut to about 9 percent, which the police department says is about one-third the national rate. There’s been one intimate-partner homicide since 2009, compared to 17 between 2004 and 2008.

“We’d get 5,000 domestic-violence calls a year — every year it’s our No. 1 call,” Chief Sumner said. “It gets passed on from generation to generation, but this program is a really good shot at breaking that cycle citywide.”

Efforts to raise awareness about domestic violence have been vigorously pursued in the U.S. for more than three decades. After Congress passed the Violence Against Women Act in 1994, domestic violence committed by intimate partners — current or former spouses, boyfriends or girlfriends — declined by more than 60 percent over the next 10 years.

Since then, however, the numbers have stayed relatively flat.

Even as incidents involving National Football League players and other pro athletes refocus attention on domestic violence, leading prevention advocates say more resources and smarter strategies are needed to combat it.

“We now have a safety net for victims, we have the laws in place, judges who understand the seriousness of the issue,” said Esta Soler, president of Futures Without Violence. “We need to do more to prevent the problems, not just treat the problems.”

For decades, so-called batterer intervention programs have been one of the main forms of prevention, with offenders participating in group sessions aimed at promoting non-abusive behavior. A range of local programs have won praise — such as Wisdom Walk, which focuses on African-American men in Milwaukee, and Caminar Latino, which runs a 24-week program for Latino men in Atlanta.

However, research on the effectiveness of group intervention programs has produced mixed findings — causing some judges and probation officers to mandate that men participate, others saying there’s no evidence of success.

And what about the much-discussed programs in High Point and Pittsburgh? Here’s a closer look at each:

___

The new regimen in High Point, a city of about 107,000, kicks into gear whenever police respond to a domestic disturbance call. Even if there’s no arrest, and no previous record of domestic violence, the alleged aggressors receive another visit from a police officer within 48 hours and are notified that they are henceforth on a “watch list.”

With any subsequent domestic violence offense, there’s an escalating series of consequences, including a face-to-face warning from a detective at the time of arrest and — for some repeat offenders — a summons to appear in person before a panel of police, prosecutors and members of the community.

“In an hour, we explain how it’s going to be different,” Sumner said. “We will use any means to sanction you.”

The pressure tactics include threatening to classify any further domestic violence offense as a felony and to expedite prosecution of any other criminal case pending against the offender. Sumner’s department has found that many domestic-violence offenders have a record of other violent crimes, and uses those records to help decide which targets of the program might deserve extra scrutiny.

The community panel makes clear that the police will maintain their aggressive stance regardless of whether the offender’s victim plays an active role in any future case or seeks to stay out of it.

David Kennedy noted that in the traditional responses to domestic violence, the onus often was on the victim to report the abuse and testify about it in court, sometimes incurring threats and further violence in the process.

“We wanted to be able to say to the offender, ‘You’re dealing with us, you’re not dealing with her. The state is going to make you stop,'” Kennedy said. “The feedback from the women is, ‘You’ve got his attention. Things are better. Keep it up, and keep me out of it.'”

If victimized women do want services, they are offered through a Victim’s Justice Center that opened in April. It’s a one-stop site where victims can meet with police, get protective orders from legal aid attorneys, and be informed of other available services.

“In the past, it was up to the victim to do all the work while dealing with the threats,” said Tiffany Atkins, a domestic violence attorney with Legal Aid of North Carolina. “Now we take the responsibility.”

Sumner said his department has been able to implement the program without increasing its budget — primarily by adding some new training and reassigning two detectives to specialize in domestic-violence cases.

Said Kennedy of the approach, “If you do it smart, it doesn’t need to be costly.”

___

If any high school was tailor-made for Coaching Boys Into Men, it might be Woodland Hills. It’s a perennial football powerhouse in western Pennsylvania, sending many of its players on to major college teams and even to the NFL. It also serves a 12-town district that includes some of greater Pittsburgh’s roughest neighborhoods.

“The community of kids we deal with — there are a lot of broken homes,” said Keith Davis, who attended the school and now, at 30, is in his third year on the football coaching staff.

“A lot of players have seen where their father has beaten their mother, beaten their sister — it’s no wonder they grow up the same way,” Davis said. “The program — they’re actually living it. In some schools, it might not hit home the way it did with us.”

Davis recalled how players followed news reports of the Steubenville, Ohio, case in which two high school football players were convicted last year of raping a 16-year-old girl after an alcohol-fueled party in 2012.

“A lot of our guys came back and said, ‘Coach, I’ve been in situations like that,'” Davis said. “We have to put a stop to it.”

Launched as a public service announcement campaign in 2001, Coaching Boys Into Men has since expanded to schools and coaches associations across the country — with new pilot programs this year involving coaches of 7th- and 8th-grade athletes. It’s based on the premise that young athletes will take exhortations from their coaches seriously, and then — as role models among their peers — will be taken seriously by other students as they re-think their attitudes about relationships and abuse.

“If you’re a student athlete, you’re also a student leader — respected by peers, by underclassmen, with a degree of influence and power,” said Alan Johnson, superintendent of the Woodland Hills School District. “You can be a leader for good, or a leader for bad. You have to make the decision which kind you’re going to be.”

One of the team’s top linemen on offense and defense, 265-pound senior Daniel Gibson, said the players, by taking the program to heart, had indeed had an influence on other students.

“Whatever we do, everyone else would like to do,” he said. “They get off on our vibe”

Another advocate of Coaching Boys Into Men is Wendell Say, head football coach for 35 years at Aiea High School near Honolulu. He’s been using the program for five years — it’s now a routine prelude to practices on Wednesdays.

“The curriculum is simple — it just takes 15 minutes at most, unless you let the kids talk,” Say said. “I sometimes take 45 minutes.”

Say says his players — many from low-income housing projects — often convey their firsthand knowledge of domestic violence. They’ve seen it in their family, or abused their own girlfriends, and they’ve also followed the domestic-violence cases involving Ray Rice and other NFL players.

“We still have kids who make wrong choices,” Say said. “But hopefully every year you learn more — a little understanding that just because you’re stronger doesn’t give you the right to hurt someone.”

The program — broken down thematically on a series of “training cards” — targets such behavior as catcalling and demeaning boasts about girlfriends. It also advises coaches on how to handle actual incidents of physical and sexual violence committed by team members.

The ethos is summed up in a pledge to be taken by players and coaches:

“I believe in treating women and girls with honor and respect. I know that violence is neither a solution nor a sign of strength. I believe that real men lead with conviction and speak out against violence against women and girls. I believe that I can be a role model to others by taking this pledge.”

http://www.pennlive.com/nation-world/2014/11/in_pennsylvania_and_beyond_tea.html

What Does a Real Estate Lawyer Do?

Real estate lawyers document and review real estate transactions, including purchases, leases, inspections and appraisals. They also help resolve title insurance and environmental issues. When things go wrong in real estate transactions, real estate lawyers step in to file and defend lawsuits in court. Many real estate lawyers also help lenders carry out foreclosure, while others help borrowers defend against foreclosure.

Document Drafting

One of the key roles a real estate lawyer plays is that of document drafter. Real estate attorneys prepare deeds for conveyance transactions, leases and rental agreements, purchase contracts and financing agreements. While state law allows real estate agents to help clients fill out these types of documents, only licensed lawyers can actually draft and revise the documents.

Negotiations

Because real estate lawyers have sophisticated experience with many types of real estate transactions, clients often ask their real estate lawyer to negotiate the terms and conditions of real estate deals. This involves working with other attorneys, developers, brokers and investors.

Transaction Review

Some real estate attorneys are involved only in reviewing and providing advice on real estate transactions. Clients will negotiate their own deals, sign a contract and then ask the lawyer to perform the “due diligence” on the deal. This means the lawyer will examine legal title issues, environment issues and reports and any of the contracts or other documents involved in the transaction. Real estate lawyers have training that allows them to spot issues that their clients do not recognize. In this role, the real estate lawyer plays guardian for the clients to make sure the clients don’t fall into any unseen legal traps.

Litigation

Real estate transactions don’t always work out, and when they don’t, it is common to involve the court in a lawsuit. Real estate lawyers represent their clients in real estate litigation. This includes drafting legal pleadings to file with the judge, participating in hearings and trial with the judge, and filing appeals if necessary. It also includes bargaining with opposing counsel to try and work out settlement agreements.

Foreclosure

Many real estate attorneys specialize in mortgage and trust deed foreclosure, particularly during difficult economic times. Some lawyers represent lenders while others represent borrowers. The lawyers representing lenders help guide lenders correctly through the foreclosure process, which may include filing a lawsuit in court. The lawyers representing borrowers, on the other hand, try to make life difficult for the foreclosing lender by challenging any mistakes made in the foreclosure process, and by negotiating with the lender for a settlement agreement to stop the foreclosure process.

Real Estate Law

Real Estate and Property Law covers an extensive legal area, which is regulated by federal and state statutes, as well as common law. Many aspects of this area overlap with contract law. The terms “real estate”, “realty” and “real property” are generally used interchangeably, although many people associate “real estate” more closely with the structures or buildings and the land. However, real property/real estate encompasses more than just the obviously tangible aspects. It comprises land and that which is attached to or belongs with the land, such as the immovable structures like buildings, houses, trees, bushes and minerals permanently affixed to the land, But it also consists of the interests, benefits and rights that are legally considered attached to the real property, which can include certain rights to the air above the land, to drill in the ground beneath it, rights to live on the property for a specific timeframe or to acquire the real property in the future, and more.

The practice area of real estate and property law deals with a variety of related issues, including the following: rights and interests in real estate and real property; sales, purchases and other transfers of real estate and real property; legal aspects of rental property and landlord issues; tenants’, renters’ and homeowners’ rights; title to real property; settlement of claims against property rights; property development; zoning and land use; related agriculture issues; home loans and foreclosures; and various other relevant topics. This is a complex practice area, further complicated by the significant inconsistency in the laws throughout different cities and states. Real estate attorneys are versed in many different activities, from the mundane drafting of deeds and filing of liens, to handling boundary and zoning disputes and even assisting families in court when threatened with foreclosure. Copyright HG.org

http://www.hg.org/realest.html

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When do you need a Construction Accident Attorney

If there is any job that conceals a minefield of danger and risk, it’s construction work. Every year, thousands are seriously injured or killed in construction accidents on construction sites. And while many precautions have been put into place to protect workers, construction accidents continue to be the number one cause of job-related deaths in America.

An astounding 1 out of every 10 workers will get injured this year. This is when you need a Construction Accident Attorney. Hastily constructed scaffolding, improperly braced cranes and falls from high places contribute greatly to this high accident rate. In Los Angeles, as in other big cities, economic pressure to get buildings up faster and faster is only making matters worse. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) estimates that there will be 1000 work-related deaths nationwide this year in the construction industry. In fact, this trend is so alarming that after ten workers died in seventeen months in Las Vegas construction accidents, Congress is reviewing of whether OSHA’s policies are not only adequate, but are being followed.

Los Angeles Construction Accident Attorneys are seeing more and more devastating cases emerge from on-site accidents. Burns, amputations, spinal injuries, asphyxiation due to faulty ventilation, falls, blindness and head injuries are only a few of the catastrophic construction accidents that can put victims out of work, sometimes permanently. Others face a lifetime regimen of medication and/or weeks or months of rehabilitation. During that time, their families are often without income.

It is the responsibility of the construction site’s General Contractor and his subcontractors to assure the safety of their workers, maintaining a workplace as free of potential hazards as possible and to supervise on-site work situations. This, unfortunately, isn’t always the case. Construction accidents are often caused by negligent General Contractors or Contractors who’ve abdicated supervision to negligent sub-contractors. Ben Howland, a drywall hanger in Los Angeles, was walking across his job site when a bobcat carrying an unbalanced load of drywall broke, and dropped the load on him. He was left paralyzed, unemployable and devastated. His Los Angeles Construction Accident Attorney proved that negligent supervision by the subcontractor and a badly maintained forklift was to blame for the accident. Ben collected $2.5 million.

Third party negligence plays a growing part in on-site construction accidents. Even with the best supervision, faulty third-party equipment, ie: damaged scaffolding, heavy equipment not adequately maintained, or faulty power tools – may cause an unforeseen accident. Negligent, third parties may also, according to law, assume partial responsibility. An expert construction accident attorney can untangle the liability of third party negligence for you if you have suffered such an accident.

Not only construction workers fall under this shadow of injury. Visitors to a job site or innocent passers-by who suffer injury or death fall under this same rule of law. A perfect example of this happened recently in New York City when a crane toppled off the roof of a building under construction and nearly demolished a building across the street, killing several people and injuring others. These victims had nothing whatsoever to do with the construction site, but were victims of negligence of the general contractor, product safety issues and other third party negligence still to be decided in court.

Workman’s Compensation may cover a certain percentage of the expenses incurred by a construction accident, but alone will be woefully insufficient to cover all the costs of a long-term or catastrophic injury such as paralysis, blindness, traumatic brain injury or death. Those types of injuries will often put the victim or the victim’s family into serious financial trouble if not compensated fairly. In such cases, third party negligence will often play a part in the settlement an expert construction attorney can achieve for their client, even if suing the General Contractor is not possible. It is very important to contact an attorney as soon as possible so that evidence of third party negligence can be preserved and investigated.

In California, the joint and several liability rules apply to every person who bears responsibility for a worker’s injury and a good construction accident attorney is skilled at applying this rule of law to the entire injury, including lost wages, medical bills and pain and suffering.

Several years ago, California passed a law to make it easier for workers who have been injured to collect their Worker’s Compensation without the hassle of going to court to collect it. But at the same time, big corporations use high paid lawyers to keep you, the victim, from receiving all the Worker’s Comp benefits you’re entitled to. Why? Because their bottom line does not take the reality of yours into consideration. It is their job to help the insurance companies save money.

What recourse can a worker take when he or she has been injured on the job? First, find a good Construction Accident Attorney. In Los Angeles, such lawyers are familiar with California’s Workers Compensation law and can help the client navigate that difficult arena. If you or someone you love has been injured, you have enough to worry about right now without figuring out how to navigate the legal system. Let the experts help you!