SLATE RUN PENNSYLVANIA CONSTRUCTION EXPERT WITNESS
DIRECTORY AND CAPABILITIES

Thomson Reuters Construction Law (Virginia Practice Series)

March 31, 2026 — Jennifer L. Harris & Michael A. Branca - Peckar & Abramson, P.C.
P&A Partners Michael A. Branca and Jennifer L. Harris have authored the most recent edition (2025) of Construction Law (Virginia Practice Series), part of Thomson Reuters’ ProView legal reference library. Associate Julia Loudenburg also provided substantial assistance for this edition. Construction Law includes summaries and analysis of statutes, regulations, and cases. It covers all major legal issues, including:

• Licensing
• Building code compliance
• Public-private partnerships
• Public contract bidding and performance
• Dispute resolution
• Damages
• Third-party liability
• Liens and bonds

Reprinted courtesy of Jennifer L. Harris, Peckar & Abramson, P.C. and Michael A. Branca, Peckar & Abramson, P.C. Ms. Harris may be contacted at jharris@pecklaw.com Mr. Branca may be contacted at mbranca@pecklaw.com Read the full story...

---

Newmeyer Dillion Announces Jacqueline McCalla as Its Newest Partner

February 02, 2026 — Newmeyer Dillion
NEWPORT BEACH, CALIF. – January 28, 2026 – Prominent business and real estate law firm Newmeyer Dillion is pleased to announce that Walnut Creek attorney Jacqueline McCalla has been elected to partnership. Jacqueline focuses her practice on business and construction litigation. In her practice, Jacqueline takes pride in assisting businesses of all sizes and entrepreneurs in various matters whether it be a pre-litigation matter or in litigation, from case inception through trial. She represents developers, builders, and contractors in complex, multi-party disputes involving a variety of residential, commercial, and mixed-use properties. Jacqueline's practice also includes litigating insurance disputes. Jacqueline leverages her past experience advocating for both carriers and insureds to now help companies better understand their policies and stay protected. "Since joining the firm, Jacqueline has been a thoughtful, hardworking, and solutions-oriented attorney who consistently delivers great results for our clients," said Managing Partner Paul Tetzloff. "It's no surprise that clients value her work and actively seek her out." Jacqueline earned a B.A. in Legal Studies from University of California, Berkeley, and a J.D., from University of San Francisco School of Law, graduating magna cum laude. About Newmeyer Dillion For over 40 years, Newmeyer Dillion has delivered creative and outstanding legal solutions and trial results that achieve client objectives in diverse industries. With over 60 attorneys working as a cohesive team to represent clients in all aspects of business, employment, real estate, environmental/land use, and insurance law, Newmeyer Dillion delivers holistic and integrated legal services tailored to propel each client's operations, growth, and profits. Headquartered in Newport Beach, California, with offices in Walnut Creek, California and Las Vegas, Nevada, Newmeyer Dillion attorneys are recognized by The Best Lawyers in America©, and Super Lawyers as top tier and some of the best lawyers in California and Nevada, and have been given Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review's AV Preeminent® highest rating. For additional information, call 949.854.7000 or visit www.newmeyerdillion.com.

---

Kahana Feld Announces Key Partner Additions Coast to Coast

June 22, 2026 — Kahana Feld
IRVINE, CA – June 10, 2026 – Kahana Feld is pleased to announce Yvette Davis, Evan Kalooky, Beth Obra-White, Sean Paden, Michael Parme, Jeffrey Schmid, and Julieanne Yanez have joined the firm as partners. Four of these partners are joining the San Diego office, which further strengthens the firm’s General Liability and Construction Litigation practices and enhances Kahana Feld’s ability to serve clients across a broad range of complex matters in the region. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Kahana Feld

---

PSA: Be Sure to Document (Even When Time is Short)

April 14, 2026 — Christopher G. Hill - Construction Law Musings
Written change orders are a big deal. Almost all construction contracts (at least the well drafted ones) require written contracts. Written change orders are even important enough that Virginia law requires these provisions in residential construction contracts. Why are they so important? Because they are a “mini-contract” of sorts. They set the expectations, price, time, and work to be performed; work that was not included in the original price or scope for the project. Without this in writing, there will be no record of what the parties agreed to do. Does this sound familiar? Sound like its own contract? It should. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of The Law Office of Christopher G. Hill
Mr. Hill may be contacted at chrisghill@constructionlawva.com

---

Leaders in Dispute Resolution Need to Make Unbiased Decisions for Mediation to Succeed

March 31, 2026 — Rick G. Erickson - Snell & Wilmer
As a mediator helping to settle construction disputes and as an arbitrator deciding outcomes of these disputes, I found certain lessons to be especially helpful after graduating last summer from the Executive Education program at Harvard Kennedy School (HKS). The exceptional HKS curriculum included courses focused on negotiation strategies for multiparty disputes, decisive leadership during crisis, and human behavior affecting dispute resolution. In particular, our HKS class debated the impact of cognitive bias in dispute resolution, and we studied a central theme that decision-making is universally scientific. That is, parties making decisions in dispute resolution exhibit and rely upon empirical factors that good mediators and decision makers should appreciate and understand. Bias, for example, can cause key players to discount persuasive witnesses, admissible evidence, and reliable expert opinions that influence the outcome of a construction dispute. Biased decision makers may also choose to withhold key information from the mediator, as though doing so will help rather than hurt what is supposed to be an objective and diplomatic process. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Rick G. Erickson, Snell & Wilmer
Mr. Erickson may be contacted at rerickson@swlaw.com

---

Anti-Concurrent Causation Clause Prevents Coverage for Collapse

April 27, 2026 — Tred R. Eyerly - Insurance Law Hawaii
The appellate court affirmed the decision of the trial court granting summary judgment to the insurer after agreeing that the policy’s anti-concurrent causation clause barred coverage. Lido Hospitality, Inc. v. AIX Specialty Ins. Co., 2026 Iii. App. Unpub. LEXIS 133 (Ill. Ct. App. Jan. 27, 2026). One of the brick veneer walls of the Lido Motel collapsed during a windstorm. Lido reported the loss it its insurer, AIX. AIX investigated and determined that the brick veneer collapsed due to pervasive wear and tear and corrosion of the underlying infrastructure that secured the veneer- specifically the components that anchored or tied the masonry veneer to the underlying wooden substrate. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Tred R. Eyerly, Damon Key Leong Kupchak Hastert
Mr. Eyerly may be contacted at te@hawaiilawyer.com

---

It’s That Time of Year: Contract Review Time

February 02, 2026 — Garret Murai - California Construction Law Blog
My father used to make me wash the family cars every weekend . . . rain or shine. The nice thing about washing a car in the rain is that you don’t need to dry it. Once, while sudsing up one of the family cars in the rain I spotted a couple of Jehovah Witnesses making house calls along our street. As they approached our house, they looked at me, said something to one another, and decided membership probably wasn’t a good fit for our family. If my dad saw that he probably would have thought that was reason enough to have me wash the family cars in the rain. Obviously, I never mentioned it to him. This is all a rather nostalgic way of reminding myself to get off my duff. The holidays are over. There’s stuff needing doing. Whether you like it or not. Like updating my contracts. You might consider doing the same. A few suggestions: Retention For certain private works construction contracts entered into on or after January 1, 2026, retention is now capped at 5%, mirroring the 5% retention cap on state and local public works construction contracts. The 5% retention cap applies to contracts between owners and direct contractors, between direct contractors and subcontractors, and between subcontractors. So, basically, everyone up and down the construction change. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Garret Murai, Nomos LLP
Mr. Murai may be contacted at gmurai@nomosllp.com

---

Texas Supreme Court Rules for Road Contractors in Critical Legal Immunity Test

January 26, 2026 — Elaine Silver - Engineering News-Record
The Texas Supreme Court overturned an earlier ruling by appeals court judges clarifying who is protected by the Texas Dept. of Transportation's legal immunity shield. It is a state law barring lawsuits against contractors for auto accidents as long as the contractors build according to the design. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Elaine Silver, Engineering News-Record
ENR may be contacted at enr@enr.com

---