ANAHEIM CALIFORNIA CONSTRUCTION EXPERT WITNESS
DIRECTORY AND CAPABILITIES

IEEPA Tariff Refunds: CBP Launches CAPE Process

April 27, 2026 — David J. Creagan, Guido Antolini, Bruce W. MacLennan & Gary P. Biehn - White and Williams LLP
On April 20, 2026, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) launched the first phase of the Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries (CAPE) tool in the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) portal to administer refunds of duties imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) through a streamlined electronic filing process. Background In February 2026, the U.S. Supreme Court held that certain tariffs imposed under IEEPA were unlawful. Subsequent proceedings before the U.S. Court of International Trade required CBP to develop a scalable refund process applicable not only to litigants but also to non-plaintiffs. According to CBP and court filings, approximately 330,000 importers paid or deposited an estimated $166 billion in IEEPA duties across more than 53 million entries. In response, CBP developed CAPE as an electronic, consolidated refund mechanism within ACE. Reprinted courtesy of David J. Creagan, White and Williams LLP, Guido Antolini, White and Williams LLP, Bruce W. MacLennan, White and Williams LLP and Gary P. Biehn, White and Williams LLP Mr. Creagan may be contacted at creagand@whiteandwilliams.com Mr. Antolini may be contacted at antolinig@whiteandwilliams.com Mr. MacLennan may be contacted at maclennanb@whiteandwilliams.com Mr. Biehn may be contacted at biehng@whiteandwilliams.com Read the full story...

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Generic Complaint Alleging Bad Faith is Insufficient

August 24, 2026 — Tred R. Eyerly - Insurance Law Hawaii
The federal district court granted the insurer’s motion for judgment on the pleadings after determining that the insured’s claims for bad faith and unfair claims settlement practices were insufficiently pled. Navia v. State Farm Fire & Cas. Co., 2026 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 111261 (W.D. N. C. May 20, 2026). The insured submitted a claim for damages to real property owned by the insured allegedly caused by Hurricane Helene. State Farm advised the insured that only some of the claimed damages were covered by the policy and payment for such damages were denied because the estimate for the covered damages did not exceed the policy’s deductible. The insured sued asserting claims for breach of contract, bad faith, and unfair claim settlement practices. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Tred R. Eyerly, Damon Key Leong Kupchak Hastert
Mr. Eyerly may be contacted at te@hawaiilawyer.com

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Leading Boutiques Combine to Form SDV Fenchurch, A Global Law Firm for Insurance Policyholders

September 15, 2026 — SDV Fenchurch
TRUMBULL, Conn., and LONDON, Sept. 1, 2026 — Saxe Doernberger & Vita, P.C. (SDV), Fenchurch Law, Wesolowski Abogados, and CLIR & Fenchurch and their partner members in Asia, Europe and North America combined today to launch SDV Fenchurch, a global law firm built exclusively to represent policyholders and the brokers who advise them. Structured as a Swiss verein, SDV Fenchurch unites dedicated insurance-recovery practices across eight jurisdictions in the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Spain, Denmark, Norway, Turkey, and Singapore. With over 90 lawyers devoted to insurance coverage matters, the firm is among the largest policyholder-side practices in the world and, by number of jurisdictions with full-time policyholder counsel capabilities, the most geographically extensive. The founders are brought together by a single shared mission: to act solely for policyholders, never the insurers, in insurance disputes. This is in stark contrast to most international firms with insurance practices, which mostly represent insurers only. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of SDV Fenchurch

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Navigating Timelines and Technology: Patent Strategies for Space and Earth

June 01, 2026 — Kate Nuehring Su & Vanessa Wang - Engineering News-Record
More than half a century after the Apollo 11 landing fulfilled President John F. Kennedy’s bold vision, the global race back to the Moon is no longer theoretical. With renewed attention on NASA’s Artemis program and a surge of commercial investment in space infrastructure, lunar exploration is again shaping technology priorities here on Earth. Reprinted courtesy of Kate Nuehring Su, Engineering News-Record and Vanessa Wang, Engineering News-Record Read the full story...
ENR may be contacted at enr@enr.com

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Modern Building-Sundt $17M Claim Is Stranded by Hospital Bankruptcy

April 27, 2026 — Richard Korman - Engineering News-Record
A $16.9-million claim for work on a hospital addition by a joint venture of contractors Modern Building Co. and Sundt Construction is stuck and delayed indefinitely following the California hospital's December bankruptcy filing. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Richard Korman, Engineering News-Record
Mr. Korman may be contacted at kormanr@enr.com

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Fourth Circuit Extends Coverage to Contractor

May 14, 2026 — Hunton Insurance Recovery Blog
The Fourth Circuit in APAC-Atlantic, Inc. v. Owners Insurance Co., No. 24-1969, 2026 WL 458402 (4th Cir. Feb. 18, 2026) recently endorsed broad coverage for additional insureds, interpreting “arising out of” broadly under North Carolina law to extend coverage to a repaving company under its subcontractor’s liability insurance policy. The court held that an additional insured’s liability “arising out of” a named insured’s work in an additional-insured endorsement means liability “relating to” or “causally connected to” the named insured’s operations, rather than liability defined more narrowly as “caused by” or “the fault of” the named insured. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP

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Italian Court Convicts 32 in Morandi Bridge Collapse Case

August 25, 2026 — Bryan Gottlieb - Engineering News-Record
Former Autostrade per l'Italia CEO Giovanni Castellucci was sentenced to 12 years in prison July 16 after an Italian court handed down the first criminal verdicts stemming from the 2018 Morandi Bridge collapse in Genoa that killed 43 people. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Bryan Gottlieb, Engineering News-Record
Mr. Gottlieb may be contacted at gottliebb@enr.com

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Five Snell & Wilmer Partners Named to Utah Business’ 2026 Legal Elite

September 29, 2026 — Snell & Wilmer
SALT LAKE CITY – Snell & Wilmer is pleased to announce that five partners have been named to Utah Business’ 2026 “Legal Elite.” The annual recognition honors leading Utah attorneys who are making a meaningful impact in their respective areas of practice. Honorees are peer-nominated and selected by a panel of experienced legal and law enforcement professionals based on their legal knowledge, commitment to ethical standards, and professional achievements. Wade R. Budge is a land use and real estate lawyer with significant experience advising developers and owners in all aspects of real estate development. He has negotiated entitlements for master planned communities, industrials projects, retail centers, office buildings, subdivisions, and mountain resorts throughout Utah. He also regularly represents clients in the use, acquisition, and disposition of real estate projects throughout the Western United States. Budge has advised developers in obtaining public incentives and using public finance tools, including tax increment financing, to facilitate new and redevelopment projects, and regularly advises clients with government relations matters involving state and local governments. Budge has negotiated public-private partnerships with dozens of local governments and with every one of the state’s development agencies, including the Point of the Mountain State Land Authority, the Military Installation Development Authority, and the Utah Fairpark Area Investment and Restoration District. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Snell & Wilmer

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