A construction attorney can help you avoid costly and time-consuming litigation by providing a wide variety of legal services. For example, a California-license construction attorney helps negotiate a settlement when both parties have reached the pivotal stage of litigation. Negotiating a settlement allows you to avoid participating in a civil trial, which can last months, if not years. Before you sign a contract to hire a general contractor, a highly-rated lawyer from Alves Radcliffe performs a thorough review of the proposed contract to confirm that it matches your legal interests.
One of the most important types of legal services provided by a construction attorney involves preventing the general contractor overseeing your home improvement project from issuing a mechanic’s lien. A mechanic’s lien represents a legal maneuver that compensates a general contractor for work already completed on a home remodeling project. It seeks compensation for the labor and materials used to work on a home improvement project, as well as pays the general contractor for providing certain services.
As a homeowner, the last thing you want to happen during a construction project is to get embroiled in a legal dispute. However, you should take action if one of several events unfolds that derail the completion of your home improvement project.
Let’s review three events that unfold during a construction project that make it appropriate to hire a construction attorney.
Project Delays
Project delays are a common event that unfold during a home construction project. Mother Nature often disrupts the schedule of a home improvement project, from blistering heat to heavy thunderstorms. Weather-related delays should be accounted for within a construction contract by clearly spelling out what constitutes a weather delay and how long the general contractor has to wait out a weather-related disruption.
However, the general contractor hired to manage your home remodeling project might delay your project for unwarranted reasons, such as devoting labor and materials to another project. A project delay can cost you a considerable amount of money, which means it is an appropriate reason to hire a construction attorney.
Shoddy Work
Let’s say you hire a roofing contractor to replace the roof over your home. Shortly after completion of the project, you notice multiple areas of the roof where water leaks into your house. The roofing contractor signed a contract promising to meet certain specifications like installing a new roof that prevents water from entering your home. In addition, the contract also should contain language that establishes the highest standards for workplace safety not only for the construction crew, but also for you and your family.
Hiring an experienced construction attorney prevents shoddy workmanship from devaluing your home.
Abandoned Project
What happens when the general contractor hired to manage your project stops showing up for work? Although a general contractor might have a valid reason for abandoning a project such as not getting paid for work already completed, you might have to deal with a general contractor that has run out of money and/or cannot find enough licensed subcontractors to get the work done. You have the right to take legal action if the general contractor has abandoned your project for a legally invalid reason.