In an article published by Construction Dive, Michael J. Kurzman comments on construction litigation scenarios contractors and owners may face, advising parties to try to work things out before taking a dispute to court.
While a contractor or owner might be forced to sue if the other party refuses to negotiate, communication early on is probably one of the most important tools a contractor or owner can utilize if the objective is to avoid the courtroom.
For example, if your firm owes money to suppliers or subcontractors the first step is to explain the situation to them, Michael said.
“They’ll probably work with you in some way because … a bad settlement is still better than a good litigation,” he said. “So hopefully they would have that same mindset, and they would work with the entity that owes them the money to try to come up with a payment plan or time or something because they’d rather get paid than have to litigate.”
Those that want to litigate on principle and want to move forward with a lawsuit at any cost usually change their minds once they realize the expense. “That goes on until about the time they get their third bill and then suddenly the principle is not that important,” Michael said.
Click here to read the full article.
