Anaheim California Construction Expert Witness Directory

Travelers Injury Impact Report Highlights Longer Recovery Times Amid Declining Injury Rates

May 05, 2026 — The Travelers Companies, Inc.
HARTFORD, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Travelers Companies, Inc. (NYSE: TRV) today released its 2026 Injury Impact Report, an analysis of more than 1.2 million workers compensation claims received by the company from 2021 through 2025. The report finds that even as workplace injury rates decline, the injuries that do occur are growing more complex and taking longer to heal – a trend driven by an aging workforce and the disproportionate vulnerability of first-year employees. “The decrease in workplace injuries is a positive story, yet injured workers are still missing an average of 80 workdays,” said Claude Howard, Vice President of Workers Compensation Claim at Travelers. “This report is a reminder that progress doesn’t mean the risk environment requires any less attention, and an employer’s commitment to safety must keep pace with an ever-evolving workforce and injury landscape.” Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of The Travelers Companies, Inc.

Subcontrator’s Insurer Must Reimburse for Defense of Contractor

January 21, 2026 — Tred R. Eyerly - Insurance Law Hawaii
The court determined that the subcontractor’s insurer owed a defense to the additional insured general contractor in a bodily injury suit. Charter Oak Fire Ins. Co. v. Liberty Mut. Fire Ins Co., 2025 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 227712 (S.D. W. V. Nov. 19, 2025). A.L.L. Construction, Inc. was the general contractor for a construction project. West Virginia Paving, Inc. was the subcontractor for paving work. After construction began, Charlottee Smith allegedly fell and was injured due to A.L.L. and West Virginia Paving’s negligent work. She sued both A.L.L. and West Virgina Paving. Smith and West Virginia Paving settled. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Tred R. Eyerly, Damon Key Leong Kupchak Hastert
Mr. Eyerly may be contacted at te@hawaiilawyer.com

Bad Faith Claim Survives Summary Judgment

June 08, 2026 — Tred R. Eyerly - Insurance Law Hawaii
The court denied the insurer’s motion for partial summary judgment on the insured’s bad faith claim, but granted the motion on the insured’s claim for punitive damages. Serbian Orthodox Church v. Brotherhood Mut. Ins. Co., 2026 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 58234 (S.D. Cal. March 19, 2026). On February 1, 2023, the Church filed a claim for water damage with Brotherhood Mutual Insurance Company (BMIC). The claim was based on rain and wind that caused extensive water intrusion into the Sanctuary, damaging its plaster walls and ceilings and fresco paintings. The claim was assigned to Patrick Hurley. Hurley sent a letter discussing potential bars to coverage and requesting further information and documents from the Church. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Tred R. Eyerly, Damon Key Leong Kupchak Hastert
Mr. Eyerly may be contacted at te@hawaiilawyer.com

Toolbox Talk Series: GenAI Document Review

January 06, 2026 — Brendan J. Witry - The Dispute Resolver
This month's installment of the Toolbox Talk Series explored the use of Generative AI in document review, which as construction lawyers know can be voluminous. Jack Bandlow and Travis Olson from BRG provided an overview of how lawyers can use GenAI to make document review in construction litigation more efficient. Like other uses of GenAI, it is a tool that is not designed to replace lawyers. Rather it helps eliminate or reduce mundane or tedious tasks that are not the highest and best use of a lawyer's time. The AI-powered document review platforms are designed to recognize patterns in documents and transforms words and text into "vectors" to group concepts with similar meanings. For example, whereas a traditional keyword search for "weather delay" will only return hits on that keyword, a search utilizing vectoring will also search for conceptually similar terms, even if the keyword does not match. These tools can use natural language searches to return results that a responsive to the prompt. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Brendan J. Witry, Laurie & Brennan LLP
Mr. Witry may be contacted at bwitry@lauriebrennan.com

Balancing the Right to Repair With Evidence Preservation in Construction Defect Litigation

April 20, 2026 — Benton Wheatley & Anna Spicer - Construction Executive
Every major construction project comes with risk, whether it’s a warehouse build, a multifamily development or a major renovation. Parties tend to be aligned when things are proceeding as planned. But when something goes wrong—cracked concrete, water intrusion, systems that don’t perform as expected—those interests can quickly diverge. Property owners are often caught in the middle when construction defects surface. They’re expected to act quickly to limit damage and costs. But they also have legal obligations to preserve evidence and allow potentially responsible parties, such as contractors or designers, to observe testing, demolition and repairs. Additionally, owners often have duties to lenders and investors to fix problems promptly and pursue claims against those responsible. Meanwhile, contractors and other parties have obligations of their own—not to interfere with repairs and not to delay mitigation efforts while investigations are underway. What follows will examine how those competing responsibilities play out in construction defect disputes. Reprinted courtesy of Benton Wheatley & Anna Spicer, Construction Executive, a publication of Associated Builders and Contractors. All rights reserved. Read the full story...

How to Properly Fill Out and Use the Conditional Waiver and Release on Final Payment Form Used in California Construction

December 30, 2025 — William L. Porter - Porter Law Group
This is the third article in a series of four articles discussing how to properly fill out the four California construction releases described in California Civil Code 8132 – 8138. Let me start by noting that in addition to practicing construction law for more than 35 years, I chaired the committee of California construction attorneys who revised those sections of the California Civil Code dealing with this release form and many other construction forms as part of Senate Bill 189 in 2010. I also wrote the first version of this release form and made it free to the public well before the new law took effect in 2012. With this background, let me note a few things about the Conditional Waiver and Release on Final Payment form to help you avoid mistakes that might prevent you from achieving the intended effect of the form or releasing claim rights to a greater extent than you intend. At the end of this article is a copy of the form itself which includes numbers coinciding with the instructions I will give below. A live electronically fillable version of the form is available on our firm’s website (www.porterlaw.com) under the “Forms” section. It is free and you can fill it out on your screen before printing it out and signing it. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of William L. Porter, Porter Law Group
Mr. Porter may be contacted at bporter@porterlaw.com

HHMR: A Retrospective — Chapter One (2001–2025)

January 26, 2026 — David McLain - Colorado Construction Litigation Blog
There comes a point in every career when you stop long enough to look back, not out of nostalgia, but out of clarity. You begin to see the arc, the accidents, the grace, and the moments when others carried more of the burden than you realized at the time. For me, that moment came recently, somewhere between the twenty-fifth year of practicing construction litigation and the rewriting of our firm’s operating agreement. I found myself asking a question I should have asked long ago: What are we building, and will it last? The truth is that we at HHMR do not build anything. Our clients do. They are the ones building Colorado, from single-family homes and multifamily developments to commercial, industrial, and infrastructure projects, navigating every constraint, hurdle, and barrier this state presents to them. They are the men and women in the arena, in Theodore Roosevelt’s sense. They pour foundations, frame walls, manage subs, balance supply chains, and take the risks inherent in the act of building anything of value. And for that work, they get sued. My job, and the job of this firm, is to defend them. We are their champions. Understanding this truth is the starting point of HHMR 2.0. But to appreciate where we are going, you must first understand from where we came. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of David McLain, Higgins, Hopkins, McLain & Roswell, LLC
Mr. McLain may be contacted at mclain@hhmrlaw.com

UPDATED: Dominion Sues Feds Over Offshore Wind Project Halt, With Action Possible on Others Shut

February 02, 2026 — Debra K. Rubin - Engineering News-Record
UPDATED: Dominion Energy filed a federal lawsuit Dec. 23 in Norfolk, Va. against the U.S. Interior Dept. immediate construction pause order for its 2.6-GW Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind energy project (CVOW) off Virginia Beach, Va., which it developing to begin operation next year. The project is one of five large East Coast offshore wind projects under construction that the federal agency paused, claiming new "national security" risks. Dominion and OSW Project LLC, the entity that includes project co-owner Stonepeak Partners, a private investor, said they seek a temporary restraining order. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Debra K. Rubin, Engineering News-Record
Ms. Rubin may be contacted at rubind@enr.com

ANAHEIM CALIFORNIA CONSTRUCTION EXPERT WITNESS DIRECTORY AND CAPABILITIES