The American Institute of Architects (AIA) recently published information and conducted webinars on how architecture firms should be managing their business and professional risks during the COVID-19 pandemic. The resources are a joint effort of the AIA Risk Management Committee and its Contract Documents program. The Contract Documents program created, “How AIA contracts address issues... Continue Reading →
The design and construction industry is no exception to the concerns over safety and the efforts to control the spread of COVID-19 (aka coronavirus). Design firms, their clients, and contractors working on projects should evaluate the physical and economic risks that the coronavirus outbreak could pose for their projects and take proactive measures. The virus... Continue Reading →
Design firms have two major challenges as COVID-19, or the coronavirus, continues to spread. The primary challenge is keeping employees as safe as possible. But the other challenge is strictly financial: what happens when a design firm cannot provide services because of the epidemic or government constraints in response to the pandemic?Look at Your ContractsAddressing... Continue Reading →
While the coronavirus outbreak originated in China, it has the potential to become an international crisis. Design firms whose employees are in China, have traveled to China, or are in contact with anyone from an infected area need to take immediate precautions for employee safety. OSHA requires that employers maintain a safe workplace. Beyond the... Continue Reading →
The U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ruled on March 4th that copyright owners must wait for registration before pursuing infringement claims in court. The decision settles a circuit court split wherein certain courts had previously held that merely applying for registration was enough to satisfy the statutory prerequisite for a lawsuit. Although the opinion will have... Continue Reading →
Project owners want certainty on both the cost of putting a capital asset in place and the time it will take for the productive asset to become available. One of the greatest sources of claims against design firms is the dissatisfaction of clients with the ability of firms to design to a budget and complete... Continue Reading →
Earlier this year, the AIA published C203-2017, Standard Form of Consultant’s Services: Commissioning. The document has been significantly updated to reflect changes in the industry that have taken place since the prior version. The changes include: provisions describing the consultant’s role to help prepare the owner’s project requirements; detailed description of the consultant’s commissioning plan;... Continue Reading →
Although the federal government has been delaying or rescinding programs that address alternative energy sourcing and climate resiliency, the Department of Defense (DoD) is looking at ways to reduce energy usage and protect military installations from the effects of climate change. Last month, the John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act (Act) was signed into... Continue Reading →
Shortly after releasing the 2017 versions of the traditional owner-architect agreements, the AIA Contract Documents Committee published detailed scope of services agreements that assign professional duties to supplement or replace traditional services. These AIA specialty services documents can be added to any base owner/architect agreement to form a contract. B201-2017, Standard Form of Architect’s Services:... Continue Reading →
