ANAHEIM CALIFORNIA CONSTRUCTION EXPERT WITNESS
DIRECTORY AND CAPABILITIES

Applying Jury Verdict Method in Quantifying Damages Due to Defective Specifications

March 31, 2026 — David Adelstein - Florida Construction Legal Updates
An older case deals with three important considerations: (1) defective specifications; (2) whether the defective specifications were misleading or misrepresentative; and (3) applying the jury verdict method in quantifying damages. In Metric Construction Co., Inc. v. U.S., 80 Fed. Cl. 178 (Fed. Cl. 2008), a contractor was contracted by the federal government to construct a warehouse. There were defects in the structural steel design specifications underlying the standing seam metal roof installed by the contractor and, as a result, the roof system leaked causing damage. The contractor incurred significant costs in repairing the damage, and pursued recovery of these costs against the government. The contractor claimed the structural steel design serving as the framework for the metal roof was defective and misleading and caused the leaks. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of David Adelstein, Kirwin Norris
Mr. Adelstein may be contacted at dma@kirwinnorris.com

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A New Vision for Safety: Construction Safety Week’s Five-Year Plan

February 17, 2026 — Adam Jelen - Construction Executive
Construction Safety Week has long been a powerful show of force—a catalyst for bringing the industry together and focusing on the critical importance of health and safety. Over the last decade, we’ve made meaningful strides: advancing best practices, transitioning from hard hats to helmets, shedding light on vital issues such as mental health, fostering a culture of care and accountability and creating partnerships and initiatives that improve jobsite safety. Building on the progress we’ve made, we’ve launched a bold five-year vision to bring everyone together with trust and respect and to drive alignment in how safety is understood, owned and engineered at every step of the project. This is an industrywide effort to further deepen the culture of care centered around respect for the skilled craft and through all aspects of a project where all team members share this responsibility, this respect, across every phase: design, planning, construction and beyond. Reprinted courtesy of Adam Jelen, Construction Executive, a publication of Associated Builders and Contractors. All rights reserved. Read the full story...

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Saxe Doernberger & Vita, P.C. Expands with New Office in Foxborough, Massachusetts

June 08, 2026 — Saxe Doernberger & Vita, P.C.
Foxborough, MA — April 1st, 2026— Saxe Doernberger & Vita, P.C. (SDV), a national law firm focused exclusively on representing policyholders in insurance coverage disputes, is pleased to announce the opening of its new office in Foxborough, Massachusetts. The expansion marks another milestone in the firm’s continued growth and deepens SDV’s ability to serve clients across the region. The new location strengthens SDV’s presence in Massachusetts and expands the firm’s capacity to support both existing and anticipated client needs in an increasingly complex insurance landscape. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Saxe Doernberger & Vita, P.C.

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Court Ends Trump Shutdown of NY's $5B Empire Wind, Second Offshore Project Revived

February 17, 2026 — Debra K. Rubin - Engineering News-Record
In a much-anticipated decision Jan. 15, the federal district court in Washington, D.C., revoked a construction shutdown ordered by the Trump administration against another major East Coast offshore wind project—the $5-billion Empire Wind underway south of New York City. The project's developer, Norway-based Equinor, won a stay and preliminary injunction in response to its lawsuit and one from the state, which aims to direct most of the project's planned 810 MW of power generation to the city's metro area. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Debra K. Rubin, Engineering News-Record
Ms. Rubin may be contacted at rubind@enr.com

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OC Streetcar Project Mediation Sets $50M Payment to Walsh

July 20, 2026 — Richard Korman - Engineering News-Record
Walsh Construction told a California state court judge last month that lawsuit mediation of its claims on an Orange County light-rail project—known as OC Streetcar—had produced a settlement of some claims under which the county agreed to pay the contractor almost an additional $50 million. 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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New Executive Order Prohibits Federal Contractors from Engaging in DEI Through Employment and Procurement Activities

April 27, 2026 — Laura De Santos & Monica Prieto - Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani
On March 26, 2026, President Trump signed Executive Order 14398, entitled Addressing DEI Discrimination by Federal Contractors, requiring federal agencies to add contractual language in all federal contracts prohibiting contractors and subcontractors from engaging in any racially discriminatory DEI activities, as defined by the Executive Order (EO). While this EO includes language similar to prior DEI-related orders, it introduces a significant expansion in enforcement by subjecting non-compliant contractors to liability under the False Claims Act (FCA), including exposure to whistleblower actions and qui tam litigation. A qui tam claim is a civil action by a private individual on behalf of the government alleging fraud against federal programs and seeking to recover damages. The new EO states that involvement in any racially discriminatory DEI activities is not only unethical and illegal, but also deemed fraudulent against federal programs because it is material to the government’s payment decisions. The definition of DEI activities here matters, as this EO expands a contractor’s obligations beyond the management of its employment policies and includes prohibitions against funding or expending time or resources on DEI activities and contracting with subcontractors, vendors, or suppliers utilizing DEI programs. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of Laura De Santos, Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani
Ms. De Santos may be contacted at ldesantos@grsm.com

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HHMR Honored as a 2026 Denver Business Journal Best Places to Work Recipient

March 10, 2026 — David McLain - Colorado Construction Litigation Blog
We are pleased to share that Higgins, Hopkins, McLain & Roswell has been named a 2026 Denver Business Journal Best Places to Work honoree, a recognition grounded entirely in direct feedback from our own team members. The Denver Business Journal Best Places to Work program, in partnership with Quantum Workplace, ranks organizations based on anonymous employee engagement survey results that measure culture, leadership, communication, trust, team dynamics, and satisfaction. This year’s list includes 65 companies across the Denver metropolitan area, judged by the people who know these workplaces best: their employees. Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of David McLain, Higgins, Hopkins, McLain & Roswell
Mr. McLain may be contacted at mclain@hhmrlaw.com

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Don’t Ignore Prejudgment Interest

February 02, 2026 — David Adelstein - Florida Construction Legal Updates
When it comes to contracts, there may be a clause that provides that untimely payments shall bear interest at a particular rate. Or it may be the statutory rate. That clause will come into play when determining prejudgment interest. In ANY dispute, prejudgment interest can be an important damages component that accrues from the date of the loss. Don’t ignore prejudgment interest. The Fourth District of Florida, in a construction dispute, maintained:

“[I]f a plaintiff establishes that he sustained out-of-pocket loss, prejudgment interest must be awarded from the date of the loss. The trial court has no discretion regarding awarding prejudgment interest and must do so applying the statutory rate of interest in effect at the time the interest accrues.”

Bensusan v. Design Engineering Group, LLC, 2025 WL 3466367 (Fla. 4th DCA 2025) (citation omitted).

Read the full story...
Reprinted courtesy of David Adelstein, Kirwin Norris
Mr. Adelstein may be contacted at dma@kirwinnorris.com

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