The Woodlands Construction Dispute Lawyers

Find the right Construction Dispute attorney in The Woodlands, TX

Construction Dispute Law in Texas

Landowners and contractors in The Woodlands, Texas commonly contract with each other for major construction projects. With any large construction projects, some small delays or problems are all but inevitable, but they don't usually derail the project or lead to major disputes between the parties.

In the overwhelming majority of instances, however, these problems are resolvable, and do not lead to major disputes. Being rational, business-minded adults, landowners and construction contractors are normally 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 disputes 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 The Woodlands, Texas is considered a last resort. However, in rare cases, it does become necessary.

Examples of Construction Disputes That Might Lead to Litigation in The Woodlands, Texas

Delays: Some minor delays in a construction project are all but guaranteed to occur. Normally, 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. Additionally, 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.

Owner's refusal to pay: Contractors can also be the victims in construction disputes. 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 cases, 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.

Subcontractor Disputes: With very massive 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. However, it is the general contractor who is ultimately responsible to the owner for the satisfactory completion of the project. So, it is very necessary to the general contractor that subcontractors do a good job. If the subcontractor causes a delay or other problem, 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 lawsuit against a client for nonpayment of the contract price, and the client still refuses 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 proceeds to the contractor, to secure payment.

Can a The Woodlands, Texas Attorney Help?

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

Talk to a Real Estate Law Attorney now!

Life in The Woodlands

The Woodlands is a community located in Texas. It is within the Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown metropolitan area. Per the 2010 census, its reported population is 93,847 people. Specifically, this area is located 32 miles north from Houston.

Top employers include Chevron Phillips, Anadarko Petroleum Corporation, Baker Hughs, CBI, Hewitt Associates, Maersk Line, and Safmarine.

The legal industry also has a presence in the area because many attorneys call The Woodlands home. Also, with the area being so near Houston, residents and local businesses have access to the top-tier law firms and excellent attorneys that practice in the Houston area.

Celebrities who have once called The Woodlands home include Torrie Wilsom, Laura Wilkinson, Peter Stroud, Nick Mitchell, Larry Izzo, Jack Ingram, Hayes Carll, Michael Glyn Brown and Lance Blanks.

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