From the Ground Up
All Articles
Injunctive Relief Exclusive Remedy For Successful Bidder Seeking Damages on Construction Job Not Performed
On July 26, 2018, the Washington Supreme Court issued a new decision addressing public bidding in Specialty Asphalt & Constr., LLC v. Lincoln County. Specialty Asphalt was the winning bidder on a paving project for Lincoln County. After not requ...
Continue Reading >
Get Trained on New Requirements for Bidding on Public Works Contracts
Washington’s “responsible bidder” law already imposes significant requirements on contractors bidding on public works contracts: for instance, bidders must obtain certain types of industrial insurance, maintain records of wages and components used in...
Continue Reading >
Washington Supreme Court Upholds Strict Interpretation of Contractual Notice Provisions: Failure to Immediately Give Notice of Claim a Complete Bar to Recovery
Nova, a public works contractor, filed a claim for breach of the covenant of good faith and fair dealing, based entirely on the City's untimely and repeated rejection of submittals to perform culvert work in Olympia. The Supreme Court held that the c...
Continue Reading >
Court of Appeals Holds That “Call Before You Dig” Creates Strict Liability
As we’ve reported before, Washington strengthened its “Call Before You Dig” laws about five years ago to create a much stricter regime, with significant penalties for property owners, utility providers, and contractors that fail to comply with i...
Continue Reading >
Supreme Court Clarifies Requirements for Lawsuit on a Lien Release Bond
Bonding around mechanics liens can be an efficient way to close out a project when disputes arise, but case law and statutes created some ticklish questions about who needed to be included in any subsequent lawsuit. Now, the Washington Supreme Court...
Continue Reading >
Washington Subcontractors Can Seek Bond for Early Release of Retainage
Governor Jay Inslee recently signed into law Washington House Bill 1538 which authorizes subcontractors on public projects to request the prime contractor submit to the public owner a bond to release its portion of the retainage before the public pro...
Continue Reading >