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My Construction Company Was Sued!

Got Sued?

 

Are you getting sued? Quit getting screwed and contact our attorneys to protect you and your business further. We have a team of construction litigation attorneys ready to take your call and guide you through this time-sensitive process.
Getting sued isn’t something to take lightly, and you need to act quickly to avoid serious consequences. Prevent a default judgment from being taken out against you, respond promptly, and collaborate with your Construction Attorney to develop a plan of action for resolving your dispute or moving to litigation. We’ll show you how.

My Construction Company is Being Sued, What Do I Do?

 

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Defective Work

I’ve performed defective work on a construction project. What will happen?

  • You will be served a Plaintiff’s Original Petition (or Plaintiff’s Original Complaint), expressing exactly what is defective, what the requisites are to mitigate being sued, and the additional information necessary to understand the terms of this breach.
  • If it was a residential construction project, you may also be served a Demand Letter referencing RCLA’s specific rules about the issue in question. This may also be called a Notice of Residential Construction Defects and Demand to Cure.
  • In these documents, defective work on a construction project will often be classified as a Breach of Contract or a Breach of Warranty.
  • If you are being sued for a breach of warranty, oftentimes, people are entitled to consequential damages and/or delay damages.

I’m being sued for defective work on a construction project. What are my next steps to settle the dispute?

  • Connect with a construction law attorney to go over your Demand Letter and/or Plaintiff’s Original Petition. You will want an experienced construction attorney to review the demand for construction defect repair claims to discuss the most cost-effective options to settle the dispute.
  • Have your construction attorney review all prominent dates and deadlines that pertain to the case, the time you have to fix the work, or any response necessities.
  • Once your construction attorney has the background information on the dispute, they should lay out all your options, including the risks and rewards of each.
  • Based on the options your construction attorney has provided, you can decide the best course of action for your company. It could be offering a settlement, answering the lawsuit, and going to mediation to try and settle the dispute, or it could be starting the discovery process for litigation.
Breached Contract

I breached my construction contract. What will happen? 

  • Depending on what type of construction project you were working on, you may be served with a Notice of DTPA Violations (demand letter), a Notice of Residential Construction Defects and Demand to Cure (RCLA), or a breach of contract demand letter.
  • The notice or demand letter may also include a section on breaches of duties and warranties.
  • Breaching a construction contract can result in you being held legally responsible for damages such as material costs, lost profit, and attorney’s fees.

What do I do if I received a demand letter for breaching my construction contract?

  • Hire an experienced construction lawyer to help you format a formal response to the demand letter.
  • Review the construction contract to determine the validity of the claims, before a lawsuit for breach of contract is filed against your construction company.
  • To avoid a costly lawsuit, meet with your construction law attorney to discuss the viable path to settlement as detailed in the original notice you were first served.
  • If going to litigation is your best option in resolving your breach of contract claim, meet with your construction litigation attorney to formulate the best litigation strategy for your construction company.
Department of Labor Notice or Federal Collective Action or Claim

My construction company received a Department of Labor Notice or Federal Collective Action. What will happen?

  • If your construction company has received a Department of Labor notice or claim, or if you were served with a Plaintiff’s Original Complaint Collective Action and Jury Demand, you are now being investigated for violating The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and there may be an administrative proceeding or a trial by jury or judge on all issues.
  • A Department of Labor Notice can be the result of misclassification of employees, improper payment of employees, failure to pay overtime or minimum wages and other such offenses.
  • The Department of Labor (DOL) may run an investigation into your company’s conduct. If you were served with a federal lawsuit, then the Plaintiff or Plaintiff’s counsel will be the one investigating your company.
  • Depending on the details of your case, you could be faced with a collective action or class action lawsuit.
  • The Department of Labor, after its investigation, will most likely give you a notice or calculation for any improperly classified employees/independent contractors detailing the financial total you are still responsible for paying these individuals, including liquidated damages.
  • If the lawsuit is a collective action, that will be true for every individual taking part.

My construction company received a Department of Labor Notice or Claim. What do I do next?

  • Hire and consult with a construction attorney that is experienced in employment and labor laws immediately.
  • Conduct a thorough assessment of all your legal options with your employment law attorney for your construction company.
  • Don’t ignore it, gather all employment records; i.e., time-sheets, payroll reports, and tax documents, and present them to your construction lawyer.
I Didn't Pay

I didn’t pay a contractor or material supplier on a construction project. What will happen?

  • You may receive a demand letter for any unpaid portions of the construction project detailing the financial total you are still responsible for compensating.
  • The unpaid party can file a mechanic’s lien on the property.
  • You may be sued for a breach of construction contract or the materials supplier’s account, making you responsible for the amount owed to the other party, plus attorney’s fees and interest.
    • Your obligation to a contractor, subcontractor, or material supplier is independent from whoever hired you. Even if you did not get paid by the party that hired you, you are still responsible for paying those you hired.
  • You may also be sued for a trust fund violation if you get paid on a construction project and you don’t pay the contractors or material suppliers on that project. AKA – you can’t Rob Peter to Pay Paul!

What do I do if I’m being sued for unpaid portions of a construction project?

  • Hire an experienced construction lawyer to help you format a formal response to the demand letter.
  • To avoid a costly lawsuit, meet with your construction law attorney to discuss the viable path to settlement as detailed in the original notice you were first served.
  • If going to litigation is your best option in resolving your dispute over not paying a contractor or material supplier, meet with your construction attorney to formulate the best litigation strategy for your company.
Bad Lien

I filed a bad lien. What happens now?

  • You may receive a demand letter requesting removal of the bad or fraudulent lien.
  • If you are sued, a process server may serve you with a citation corporate. Attached to the citation will be a Plaintiff’s Original Petition, notifying you that you have been sued.
  • The above may also include damages for a fraudulent lien (up to $10,000), misapplication of trust funds, and damages for breach of contract.
  • If you fail to respond, a default judgment will be taken out against your construction company.

What do I do if I am being sued for filing a bad lien?

  • Consult your construction attorney to locate the deadline for your written response to the citation corporate.
  • Respond before the deadline to avoid a default judgment being taken against you.
  • Work with your construction law attorney and collections team to respond to a Summary Motion to Remove Invalid or Unenforceable Lien (or summary motion for lien removal), a claim for Trespass to Try Title, or Declaratory Judgment.
  • Before the deadline mentioned in the citation, make sure you submit your full and final release of the mechanic’s and materialman’s lien.

Speak With An Experienced Construction Lawyer Today

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Even in the tough times, you are not alone. We’re here to help and be your trusted legal counselor at law!

 

 

Contact our team of construction litigation attorneys at The Cromeens Law Firm, and we can help you set up a proactive plan to guide you on what you’re up against should you ever find yourself in the situation of being sued.

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