Colorado Springs Construction Dispute Lawyers

Construction Dispute Law in Colorado

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

Most often, the owners of land and contractors can end disagreements before they get too serious, thus eliminating the need for litigation. Most contracts governing construction projects have built-in remedies for the most common problems, typically requiring the party that causes a delay or other problem to pay the other party a set fee.

And even if disputes can't be resolved so easily, the courts still don't necessarily have to get engaged. 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 (usually 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).

Construction Dispute litigation in Colorado Springs, Colorado is typically time-consuming and expensive. But it is sometimes necessary, typically as a last resort.

Examples of Construction Disputes That Might Lead to Litigation in Colorado Springs, Colorado

Major Delays: If the contractor or a subcontractor is at fault in causing a considerable 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 typically 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." Alternatively, 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, typically 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 Liens: If the contractor sues a land owner and wins, he will likely obtain a monetary judgment. If the owner declines to pay, the contractor needs some way to recover. This is where the mechanic's lien comes into play. It permits a contractor to force the sale of the land or other real property that he just worked on, and use those proceeds to cover costs.

Can a Colorado Springs, Colorado Attorney Help?

Construction disputes and disagreements can be very challenging to deal with alone. The assistance of a Colorado Springs, Colorado real estate attorney can make the process of dealing with these disputes much quicker and easier.

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Life in Colorado Springs

Colorado Springs is the seat of El Paso County and is known as Money Magazine's "best big city to live in" and Outside Magazine named it number one in their 2009 list of America's best cities. Peterson Air Force Base, Falcon Air Force Base, and the Air Force Space Command are all located in Colorado Springs and draw a number of U.S. Service men and women. In fact, the famed NORAD was based in to Cheyenne Mountain overlooking the city. The armed forces including Fort Carson, Peterson Air Force Base, the United States Air Force Academy, and Schriever Air Force Base employ over 20% of the city's population.

It may be obvious to you then, Colorado Springs is home to a number of defense industry professionals from aerospace and missile defense to communications and engineering. Beoing, L-3 Communications, and General Dynamics all have major installations in Colorado Springs alongside the likes of Northrop Grumman and Lockheed Martin. The high tech boom in Colorado Springs has ushered in companies like Verizon Business, Hewlett-Packard, Intel, and Agilent. The companies range from software design to computer chip manufacturing and testing.

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Colorado Springs Construction Dispute Lawyers

Construction Dispute Law in Colorado

Examples of Construction Disputes That Might Lead to Litigation in Colorado Springs, Colorado