Lake Havasu City Construction Dispute Lawyers

Find the right Construction Dispute attorney in Lake Havasu City, AZ

Construction Dispute Law in Arizona

When a property owner and a general contractor contract for a construction project to take place on some property in Lake Havasu City, Arizona, whether it's a house, some landscaping, or a remodeling project, there is always a risk that something can go wrong. In fact, at least a very minor setback may be more likely than not.

Most often, landowners and construction contractors are able to resolve minor to moderate disagreements between themselves, and litigation is rarely necessary. Nobody likes litigation, so, to this end, most construction contracts have built-in remedies in case something goes wrong, like set price reductions if construction is delayed.

And even if disputes can't be resolved so easily, the courts still don't necessarily have to get immersed. For example, a construction contract may require mediation before any further action is taken. Mediation is a process by which a third party tries to guide the parties to the dispute to a settlement. The mediator cannot, however, render any binding decision. Another avenue is arbitration. This is where the parties go to a private arbitration service, which can render a binding judgment (typically enforceable through contract law, as the parties agree in advance to abide by the arbitrator's decision). Arbitration has benefits over litigation, as the parties can have a say in choosing the arbitrator (allowing them to have their case arbitrated by an expert on construction disputes, for example).

Litigation of a Lake Havasu City, Arizona construction dispute is never something that anyone wants to do. Nonetheless, there are sometimes no other avenues.

Examples of Construction Disputes That Might Lead to Litigation in Lake Havasu City, Arizona

Major Delays: If the contractor or a subcontractor is at fault in causing a massive delay to a project (several months, for example), this may lead to a lawsuit. If the contract stated that time was of the essence for some reason (maybe the project was a new store that the owner hoped to open before the holiday shopping season, for example), a court can normally award the owner any damages that were caused by the delay.

Owner's refusal to pay: Contractors can also be the victims in construction disagreements. Sometimes, the person who hired them will refuse to pay the agreed-upon fee, or withhold a portion of it. This, without more, certainly constitutes breach of contract. However, in such cases, the owner will rarely go to court and say "I just didn't feel like paying, so I didn't." Rather, they will claim that they had a very good reason to withhold all or part of the payment, such as unsatisfactory work by the contractor. In these situations, the court has to determine if the owner has a valid reason for not paying. If it concludes that he or she does not, it will order the owner to pay the agreed-upon price.

Subcontractors: Subcontractors are hired by general contractors to assist them in large construction projects, normally specialized tasks like installing plumbing. Nonetheless, no matter how much of the work is performed by subcontractors, the general contractor (the one that the client actually hired to do the project) is liable to the landowner as if it were doing all the work itself. This essentially means that, if a subcontractor messes up, the general contractor is the one who gets sued. But all is not lost in such a situation. If the general contractor has to compensate the owner because of the mistakes of a subcontractor, it can sue the subcontractor for whatever it had to pay to the landowner.

Mechanic's Lien: When a contractor wins a case against a client for nonpayment of the contract price, and the client still declines to pay, there is a problem: a monetary judgment means next to nothing if it can't be enforced. To solve this problem, the mechanic's lien has been developed. Basically, if a landowner refuses to pay a contractor, even in the face of a court order, the court can force a sale of the property that the contractor worked on, along with all the improvements on it, and then give the funds to the contractor, to secure payment.

Can a Lake Havasu City, Arizona Attorney Help?

Construction disputes can be time-consuming and costly. Hiring a seasoned Lake Havasu City, Arizona real estate attorney can make it much easier to deal with such disputes, and help you avoid litigation, or prevail if litigation becomes necessary.

Talk to a Real Estate Law Attorney now!

Life in Lake Havasu City

Lake Havasu City is located in Mohave County, Arizona. It is more of an isolate area from the rest of Mohave County, and is home to about 52,527 people.

What is there to do in this area? Popular attractions include Wheeler Park, London Bridge, The Nautical Beachfront Resort, Rotary Park, Turtle Beach Bar, and the Lake Havasu Art Collective.

Some famous people who have called Lake Havasu City home are Jim Health, Michael Biehn, Ryan Reynolds, Mike Corkins, and Bob Milacki.

Lake Havasu City is also home to many small law offices and law firms with competent attorneys devoted to providing personalized and excellent legal services.

All in all Lake Havasu City is a wonderful get-away for Arizona residents and anyone else!

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