How are you handling the situations when a subcontractor performs so poorly that the work needs to be redone? The checklist below set forth some steps you can take to minimize the poor performers claim. Tell the contractor about the poor workmanship. This may seem obvious, but in some situations, it may seem easier to simply fix the problem. There may also be a provision in the contract that requires [...]
Does inadvertent disclosure of protected health information keep you up at night? It should. Unlawful disclosure, or allowing unauthorized access to protected health information, case be costly. Since 2009, 65,000 breach reports, where protected health information is exposed or wrongfully accessed, have been filed with Health and Human Services Office of Civil Rights. The vast majority of these breaches do not lead to any type of formal enforcement action. But the Office of [...]
Have you ever thought about your insurance exposures when you are on vacation? We visited the family lake house this month for 10 days of natural beauty and seclusion. The house is located on Portage Lake,in the UP of Michigan on the beautiful Keewenaw Peninsula. The UP stands for Upper Peninsula, which is north of Wisconsin and bordered on three sides by Lake Superior. I am far from home while there, both [...]
You have been sued. How long until there is resolution of a professional negligence lawsuit? Six months? A year? Maybe two? Pyramids have been built faster than some cases get resolved. All participants want civil litigation over in a reasonable time, but medical malpractice lawsuits can become long and drawn out. As noted in the Nebraska Supreme Court opinion of Simon v. Drake, M.D.,285 Neb. 784, __ N.W.2d __ (2013), [...]
The latest Engineering News Record reported that gypsum board prices rose 12.5% in 2012 and could increase 15.11% in 2013. That’s a huge increase in material costs. Are you doing anything to protect yourself? Do you have an escalation clause in your contracts? What happens if you don’t have an escalation clause? If you don’t have an escalation clause, you are either at the mercy of the contractor to allow [...]
Under Nebraska law, it is unprofessional conduct to prescribe controlled substances to oneself, a spouse, child, parent, sibling, or “any person living in the same household as the prescriber.” The only exception to this prohibition is in times of medical emergency. The phrase "medical emergency" is not defined under the statutes - although it would presumably entail situations in which a family member would not have sufficient time to seek treatment elsewhere. The way [...]
More and more doctors are selling their practices due to rising business expenses and shrinking payouts from insurers. The buyers? Hospitals. According to a recent article from CNN, Doctors Bail out on their Practices, the number of physicians selling their practices to hospitals is up 30% to 40% in the last five years. In the normal transaction, the selling doctor will then become an employee of the hospital along with [...]
Earlier this month, two businessmen were accused of fraudulently bidding for and winning $23 million work of highway construction projects in Iowa and Nebraska. The two businessmen owned and operated Midwest Contracting, an Omaha based construction company that holds itself out as a Service Disabled Veteran Owned Company. The crux of the allegations allege that Midwest Contracting was not qualified to bid on or perform work under contracts directed toward [...]
6 STATES BAR CONTRACTUAL INDEMNITY FOR ADDITIONAL INSUREDS Colorado. See, Colo. Stat. § 13-21-111.5 (except for railroads); Georgia. See, Ga. Code § 13-8-2 (but allows hold harmless clauses in an insuring contract); Montana. See, Mont. Rev. Code § 28-2-2111; New Mexico. See, N.M. Stat. § 56-7-1 (prohibits requirements to "insure or defend" but allows OCIP and limited indemnity clauses); Oklahoma. See, Okla. Stat. § 15-221; Oregon. See, Or. Rev. Stat. §30.140 (prohibits subcontractor's [...]
One of the little discussed features of the Affordable Care Act (better known in some circles, for better or worse, as Obamacare) is the authorization of federal funds to be given to states so that they can set up test programs that experiment with ways to reduce Medicaid costs. One such program is underway in Oregon and is receiving positive preliminary reviews. The program establishes "coordinated care organizations" to care [...]
America's healthcare system has been no stranger to controversy over the years. A large piece of the current debate pertains to the cost of healthcare – with the finger often pointed at the rising expense of emergency medicine and unnecessary treatments. One of the goals of the new healthcare overhaul is to lessen this burden with more access to primary care physicians. Another proposed solution is to make patients front the [...]
You know the feeling, a contractor files a lien against the property, the owner is frustrated,and tells you to get the lien removed. Easier said than done. Here are two steps that can be taken to alleviate the owner’s frustration and expedite the fight over the lien. Bond Over the Lien Neb. Rev. Stat. § 52-142 provides that any person having an interest in the real estate may release the [...]
The American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA) elected LDM partner Bill Settles to its membership at its June meeting. ABOTA is one of the premier trial advocacy organizations in the country. Membership in ABOTA is limited to trial attorneys with extensive courtroom experience who exhibit high personal character, who have an honorable reputation, and who are proficient in the courtroom. Membership requires nomination by a member of ABOTA and an [...]
The Gulf of Mexico's dead zone is a big problem and the problem may the biggest on record this year as a result of the wet spring. As can be expected, heavier-than-normal rains lead to heavier-than-normal fertilizer runoff from fields, yards, golf courses, etc, into Midwestern rivers, which eventually ends up in the Gulf of Mexico. Algae feasts on the nitrogen from the fertilizer creating large algae blooms which die off and are decomposed by bacteria. The bacteria use oxygen [...]
On Tuesday, the U.S. Treasury Department announced a one-year delay in a key provision of President Barack Obama's sweeping health care law, the Affordable Care Act. It postponed the provision that required businesses with more than 50 employees to provide their workers with health insurance or face fines. The Treasury Department explained in its blog that the government needs time to simplify reporting requirements, and businesses need breathing room to adapt [...]
The debate of whether construction defects are covered by commercial general liability (“CGL”) insurance continues. The West Virginia Supreme Court recently reversed its longstanding position that construction defects were not covered by CGL insurance and joins the growing majority of state courts that have determined that defective work is covered by commercial general liability insurance. In West Virginia’s recent case, Cherrington v. Erie Insurance Property & Casualty Co., Ms. Cherrington [...]
