Hamilton Construction Dispute Lawyers

Construction Dispute Law in Ohio

Owners of real estate in Hamilton, Ohio frequently contract with other parties ("contractors") for construction on the property they own. Such projects are likely to suffer at least a few minor setbacks, and any project also carries the risk of major setbacks, delays, or unexpected costs.

In the overwhelming majority of cases, however, these problems are resolvable, and do not lead to major disputes. Being rational, business-minded adults, landowners and construction contractors are typically able to resolve disputes amongst themselves. After all, both stand to gain if the project is completed, and the contractor is paid.

Even if the parties can't easily resolve their disputes, and someone else needs to intervene, that somebody doesn't always need to be a judge or jury. Many construction disagreements call for mediation, during which a neutral third party helps the parties to the dispute negotiate a settlement. They might also go through arbitration, during which a third party renders a binding decision.

Because of the large cost in time and money involved, litigation in Hamilton, Ohio is regarded a last resort. However, in rare cases, it does become necessary.

Examples of Construction Disputes That Might Lead to Litigation in Hamilton, Ohio

Delays: Some minor delays in a construction project are all but guaranteed to occur. Typically, if contracts require a specific completion date, the contractor will give itself longer than the project would take under ideal circumstances, to account for possible delays. Moreover, construction contracts usually attempt to insure against delays, such as imposing fees on contractors if the project is delayed beyond a certain point. If no such clause is included in a contract, a court will usually award the client damages that could have been reasonably anticipated at the time the contract was entered into.

Refusal to Pay: Contractors can be on the other side of legal disagreements, as well. Sometimes, the landowners who hired them refuse to pay. This is typically because the landowner believes that the contractor didn't perform under the terms of the contract, or that the work was unsatisfactory. If this is the case, it may ultimately be up to a court to decide who is right. If the contractor did, in fact, do poor work, the landowner will be excused, at least in part, from his duty to pay. If, on the other hand, the work was satisfactory, the court will order the landowner to pay the contract price immediately, and may award further damages if the refusal to pay was done in bad faith, or if it caused foreseeable economic harm to the contractor.

Subcontractor Disputes: With very considerable construction projects, general contractors don't always have the resources to do all the work themselves, so they hire other contractors to do some of the work for them. Nonetheless, it is the general contractor who is ultimately responsible to the owner for the satisfactory completion of the project. So, it is very crucial to the general contractor that subcontractors do a good job. If the subcontractor causes a delay or other issue, and the owner sues the general contractor as a result, the general contractor can then go after the subcontractor to recover whatever it lost in the lawsuit.

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. Typically, 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 Hamilton, Ohio Attorney Help?

Disputes over construction delays or defects can be extremely taxing. Therefore, getting an efficient Hamilton, Ohio real estate attorney might mean the difference between success or failure in your business ventures.

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Life in Hamilton

Hamilton is located in Butler County, Ohio. It is in the southwest region of Ohio, with an approximate population of 62,447 people. Its nickname is the "City of Sculpture," because there are many sculptures in the city. In fact, one of the most popular attractions is Pyramid Hill Sculpture Park, a beautiful park filled with many sculptures.

Many famous people have called Hamilton home. These residents, both past and present, include William Allen, Ray Combs, Aaron Cook, Greg Dulli, Mark Lewis, John Martinkovic, Dean Miller, Jim Tracy, Roger Troutman, Brandon Underwood, E.J. Underwood, Steven J. Morese, Jimmy Wynn, and Steve "Dandy" Brown.

Hamilton is also home to many attorneys who practice in various areas of law. These attorneys focus on providing excellent, as well as personalized, legal services. Therefore, no business or residents' legal inquiries will remain unattended to in Hamilton.

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Construction Dispute Law in Ohio

Examples of Construction Disputes That Might Lead to Litigation in Hamilton, Ohio