The enforcement of liquidated damages provisions is a topic that gets a lot of attention in construction-contract disputes. Some of the most popular posts on this blog include examples of courts refusing to enforce liquidated damages provisions. (Click here for one example and click here for another example.)

One reason a court may refuse to enforce a liquidated damages provision is because the specified daily rate of liquidated damages is “grossly disproportionate” to the actual damages that are expected to be suffered due to the contractor not completing the project on time.

In addition, even if a liquidated damages clause is enforceable, it is possible that an owner can waive the right to claim liquidated damages. Under Florida law, to establish waiver, a party must show an intention to give up a known right. A waiver can be express or implied through conduct.

A federal court recently considered whether a project owner waived its right to seek liquidated damages as a matter of law.Continue Reading Can a Project Owner Waive Its Right to Claim Liquidated Damages?

When a contractor’s work on a project is impacted due to no fault of the contractor, the contractor may consider bringing a claim to get paid additional compensation for that impact. Oftentimes, the contractor may assert that its work was delayed, disrupted, or it was otherwise more inefficient than planned.

A contractor asserting a delay, disruption, or inefficiency claim against a project owner can expect the owner to look to any available defenses it has to the claim. After having read many cases involving these types of claims, one can see that the same defenses are frequently asserted.

The top three defenses to delay, disruption, and inefficiency claims include failing to timely submit a contractually compliant claim, waiver / release, and the contract expressly barring such claims. The rest of this post will provide a quick overview of those common defenses.Continue Reading Top Three Defenses Against Delay, Disruption, and Inefficiency Claims

If a project takes longer than expected due to unforeseeable reasons beyond the contractor’s control, then the contractor may have a delay claim against the owner. Typical delay-claim damages include extended general conditions, home office overhead, and financing costs.

Delay claims are one of the most common issues that arise on construction projects. Typically, the burden is on the contractor to prove a delay claim, and the contractor must prove the following three elements:

  1. the length of the delay;
  2. the causal link between the delay and the owner’s wrongful acts; and
  3. the harm to the contractor due to the delay (i.e., the contractor’s damages).

The second element can be the most difficult to prove. To show a causal link between the owner’s wrongful acts and the delay, the contractor must show that the owner’s actions affected the activities on the critical path of the project.Continue Reading No Critical Path Analysis for a Contractor Delay Claim? Expect Your Claim to Be Denied.

I recently gave a presentation on essential construction contract provisions at the annual conference for the Florida Municipal Attorneys Association. Part of my presentation addressed liquidated damages clauses in government construction contracts. After speaking, I was approached with follow-up questions about how to determine the proper daily rate for liquidated damages in construction contracts.

A liquidated damages clause is an owner-preferred contract provision that usually sets a fixed amount for which the contractor is liable to the owner if the project is not finished on time. Often, the amount is set as a certain sum of money per day the project is late (e.g., $1,000 per day).

Generally, liquidated damages provisions are enforceable. But there are circumstances where courts will refuse to enforce such a provision (click here for a recent Florida case where the court found a liquidated damages provision unenforceable).Continue Reading Court Finds Liquidated Damages Clause Unenforceable

Two contract provisions that are frequently litigated in construction disputes are no-damages-for-delay and liquidated damages clauses. A no-damages-for-delay clause typically provides that if there is a delay caused by the owner or others, the contractor will not be entitled to any additional compensation for that delay. It is a clause that project owners love because it limits their liability for delays on the project.

Similarly, a liquidated damages clause is an owner-preferred contract provision that usually sets a fixed amount for which the contractor is liable to the owner if the project is not finished on time. Often, the amount is set as a certain sum of money per day the project is late (e.g., $1,000 per day). The Florida Second District Court of Appeal recently addressed both those provisions in an opinion it issued in January 2022.Continue Reading Florida Court Finds No-Damages-for-Delay and Liquidated Damages Clauses Unenforceable