A construction company that is accused of leaving a construction defect in a commercial property may have to go to court to defend themselves. Construction litigation can be very expensive to the builder, and even if the charges are false, the business could suffer serious damage to its reputation.
Construction defects can cause serious damage to a building. Common defects named in litigation against builders include:
- Mold
- Faulty drainage
- Electrical problems
- Cracks in the foundation, floor, wall or roof
- Dry rot
- Structural failure
- Heating problems
If one or more of these issues arise in a property, the owner may accuse one of the companies involved in building it of poor workmanship, or of using inferior materials. Specifically, they may claim the company was negligent in soil analysis and preparation, construction, planning or civil and structural engineering.
There are two general categories of construction defects: patent and latent. Patent defects are obvious and likely discovered shortly after it occurred. On the other hand, the property owner may not notice a latent defect for years. By the time a latent defect comes to light, the property may have been sold multiple times.
Because of the time that may have passed and the technical nature of proving construction defects, both sides often rely on expert witnesses. These experts typically investigate the claimed defect and evaluate what they believe caused the problem.
A construction company being sued for allegedly allowing a defect to happen should get in touch with an attorney as soon as possible, if its owners want to protect themselves from unfair accusations.
