CNA Seminar2009

Deborah Monteith Neubert and Kevin Godbout recently attended the Annual Meeting of Invited Attorneys hosted by Victor Schinnerer and CNA Insurance Companies, in St. Petersburg, Florida, where they were updated on many new developments in the area of design and construction, both from the practical building perspective as well as the legal perspective. Areas of great interest presently include the application of Building Information Modeling (BIM) to projects involving Integrated Project Delivery, and the new documents issued by the AIA and the AGC for these types of projects. The design and construction industry is attempting to shift the way in which construction projects are delivered, from the now prevalent method involving designing, bidding and constructing at different stages with different entities (design-bid-build), or design-build, to designing and building with all project parties involved in the process from design through construction (IPD). The goal is consensus building and team work to bring a project in on time and within budget, with all parties having a stake in the successful outcome. It is a radical shift in the way projects are delivered to owners, and some of the major obstacles include insurance changes which are needed in order to reflect the different roles of the parties, and contractual relationships, which are redefined by virtue of the working relationships of the parties throughout design and construction. For design professionals, it may be a real improvement in the traditional means of project delivery which in many ways has resulted in more claims, higher insurance premiums and less profitability. For contractors, it is also a better method because it allows better budgeting and estimating, input into design and the practicalities of constructing the design from a means and methods perspective as well as a cost perspective, and incentives to complete early and under budget. For the owner, it places it on the team with its professionals rather than in between the design professional and the constructor. Conflicts may be resolved during construction with the use of neutrals hired to resolve issues on the spot. In short, there is a lot of enthusiasm in this new method, but as in any new method, there are many legal issues that need to be addressed. It may be years before this method becomes common, but we hope that owners will begin to see the potential advantages to this system and begin using it soon.

Another topic of interest was the new green, lean regulations being passed by states all over the country, how they will impact on the duties and responsibilities of owners, contractors and design professionals, and on suppliers of products, and all of the legal ramifications of the various statutes, regulations and guidelines on the standards of care and the scope of work of various parties to a construction project. Major changes in the way buildings and pools are built will require that all trades and professionals working in the construction industry give close scrutiny to the existing and proposed legislation in Connecticut and the federal government in this area.

For assistance in navigating through these new developments in design and construction, feel free to give Deborah or Kevin a call.