OSHA Tightens VPP Eligibility
OSHA’s longstanding, often-praised “Voluntary Protection Program” (VPP) recognizes employers and workers in both the private and federal sectors who implement effective safety and health...
A Detailed BIM Plan
Hstorically, the construction industry has been hesitant to embrace new technologies that move projects into the high tech/digitized world. This is so for many...
OSHA & MSHA Penalties Significantly Raised
On July 1, 2016, the US Department of Labor (DOL) issued an interim final rule raising civil penalties by nearly 80 percent in some...
OSHA Proposes New Safety & Health Management Guidelines
OSHA has published new proposed guidelines for establishment of workplace occupational safety and health management programs (SHMP), with public comment accepted until February 22,...
Change Orders Are Inevitable; Managing Them Effectively Is Not
For contractors, the normal instrument of change on a construction project is the “change order.” When entering into a contract to build or design/build...
Standard of Care
By William S. Thomas
These words by artist, architect, and designer Eero Saarinen—always design a thing by considering it in its next larger context—challenge modern...
From Blueprints to Bytes
For years, construction has relied on custom and tradition, combined with sweat, steel, and human grit. But now, a new kind of worker has...
Federal Circuit’s Decision Fixes Good Faith and Fair Dealing
Now for some good news in government contracts law. On February 11, 2014, a three-judge panel of the Federal Circuit reversed the Court of...
Construction Law Recognizes That “Time Is Money”
A contractor’s ability to make a steady profit depends not just on the ability to complete projects, but on the ability to complete them within...
OSHA Out of Luck Where Company Lacks “Employees”
Every now and then, I represent small companies in fighting citations issued by the Occupational Safety & Health Administration where OSHA jurisdiction becomes a...