Construction Blog

The Illinois Supreme Court rendered a very important decision on December 28th impacting the real estate and construction industry. In Sienna Court v. Champion Aluminum, the Court determined that the purchaser of a newly constructed home may NOT assert a claim for breach of an implied warranty of habitability against a subcontractor who took part in the construction of the home, where the subcontractor had no contractual relationship with the purchaser.

An Illinois appellate court has held that buyers of residential property may maintain an action against subcontractors who provided labor in the construction of their home, if there is a defect in their home that makes it not suitable for its intended purpose as a residence. Sienna Court Condominium Ass'n v. Roszak/ADC, LLC, No. 122022, 1st Dist. This court found that homeowners may bring an action against the subcontractors, if the general contractor is insolvent, even if the GC maintained a warranty fund.

Subcontractors are accustomed to believing their payments are secured by either a mechanic’s lien or a payment bond, sometimes both. For example, when the public utility, AmerenUE, convinced the Missouri Court of Appeals that due to its quasi-governmental status, it should be immune from mechanic’s liens, the court went on to say that AmerenUE would be required to have its prime contractors post payment bonds for the protection of subcontractors.

Beginning with the Little Leagues, everyone knows about “home field advantage”, where friendly fans abound, the field is familiar, and grueling travel is absent. While certainly no guarantee of victory, these are intangible factors leading to the best opportunity to win.

The anti-business Occupational Safety and Health Administration continues its onslaught of burdensome regulations on American business. The “stick it to the company” philosophy is no more evident than with its new increased penalties.