How to Comply with Chapter 558 Florida Statutes: Current Challenges and Future Changes

In short, a legal firm and its attorney are being accused of not paying a former employee fairly. The former employee is asking for proper compensation for their work. The Florida Construction Defect Statute requires owners to send a detailed notice of any construction and design defects to developers, contractors, and others before suing for the defects. This process can be complicated and has caused some problems in court. The statute aims to resolve disputes before going to court, but it can also delay repairs. It’s important for owners and contractors to follow the rules of the statute to avoid legal problems. Before a construction dispute goes to court, owners and contractors need to make some important decisions. For example, they need to decide if they want to opt out of a certain procedure when making their contract. If you’re a contractor and you receive a notice about a problem with your work, you’ll need to figure out how to involve other people who worked on the project. And if you’re a contractor, you’ll also need to decide if and how you’ll respond to the notice. These decisions should be made before going to court, and it’s a good idea to involve a lawyer to help make the best choices. Remember, the goal is to try to solve the problem without going to court, and following the rules set out in the law can help make that happen. In a construction contract, the parties can agree to skip a pre-litigation process (Ch. 558) if they think they already know all the facts and just can’t agree. This doesn’t really benefit the contractor though, because it means they won’t have a chance to understand and fix the problem before going to court. Owners can also choose to skip the Ch. 558 process by setting up their own way of dealing with construction defects in the contract. But then there might be issues with enforcing this process on other people involved in the project. Overall, it’s important for both parties to try to work things out before going to court. The owner doesn’t have to follow the usual legal process and can move forward without being stopped for not meeting certain legal requirements. One problem with the law is that it doesn’t set a specific time for repairs to be completed. This can be fixed by using a different process, which would be helpful for a business that can’t wait for repairs.

When the person making the claim and the person receiving the notice ask for it, they have to share all the evidence they have about the problem. If they don’t do this, the court can punish them later on in a lawsuit. This rule may not matter much if the dispute goes to court, because the information can be requested then. But in arbitration, where there are fewer rights to get information, it’s more important.

Overall, the law might need to be changed to better explain what evidence needs to be shared, so that people don’t have to guess and risk being punished. When a contractor receives a notice from a property owner about a defect, they need to send a copy of the notice to any subcontractors or suppliers they think are responsible for the problem. They should be specific about which defects they are holding each person accountable for. Sometimes, contractors send out notices without being specific, and this can cause problems because the subcontractors or suppliers might not respond in time with a plan to fix the issue. It’s important for contractors to be clear about which defects they are assigning to each person, so that everyone can work together to fix the problem. The contractor needs to be careful when sending a notice to subcontractors and suppliers about a potential problem with the construction. They should include a disclaimer saying that they’re not admitting the problem exists, but just giving the subcontractor a chance to check it out. The subcontractor can ask for an inspection if they want. Owners should send their own notices directly to subcontractors and suppliers to avoid any issues later on. Subcontractors and suppliers don’t have to share information with the contractor like they do with the owner, but it’s a good idea to cooperate to avoid problems. The contractor will inspect the alleged defect and may do destructive testing with the owner’s permission. They will also notify their subcontractors and suppliers to get their input. If the owner doesn’t respond to the notice, they may file a lawsuit. If the contractor doesn’t respond, there is no penalty. It’s important for the contractor to respond to show they are interested in addressing the issue. The law says that if you find a problem with your property, you should tell the people involved within 15 days. If you wait longer, they might not take your claim seriously. If you don’t tell everyone involved within a certain time, they might not have to do anything about it. So it’s important to act quickly if you find a problem. If you receive a notice about a problem with your property, you have a certain amount of time to inspect it and respond. There may be changes to the law in the future to make the process clearer, but the main ideas will likely stay the same. It’s important to follow the rules and respond on time. These are court cases and laws related to construction and property disputes in Florida. They talk about the rules for giving notice of a claim, and whether those rules apply to arbitration. The cases show that the rules for giving notice of a claim can affect the time limit for filing a lawsuit. The laws define who is considered a “contractor” and set out the process for resolving disputes. This text discusses a Florida law related to construction defects and the process for resolving disputes. It includes details about the requirements for sending a notice of claim, the option for mediation, and the obligations of the parties involved. The text also mentions court cases and specific sections of the law. A group of lawyers and experts are studying a new law, but the exact details of the law are not available yet. Two of the experts, Larry Leiby and Steven Lesser, have a lot of experience in construction law and have written articles about it. They are part of a bigger group called the Real Property, Probate and Trust Law Section, which aims to promote justice and improve the legal system.

Source: https://www.floridabar.org/the-florida-bar-journal/how-to-comply-with-chapter-558-florida-statutes-current-challenges-and-future-changes/