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#135:  Unconscionable Arbitration Agreements

NH Construction Law

“An agreement to arbitrate may be unenforceable if pursuing a claim in arbitration is so cost prohibitive that it prevents a party from vindicating its rights.” No New Hampshire case has yet found an arbitration’s delegation provision unconscionable due to financial hardship. ” Id. ” Rosen v.

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#131:  Applying Statutes of Limitations in Arbitration Proceedings

NH Construction Law

New Hampshire’s three-year statute of limitations for filing lawsuits, RSA 508:4 , states “Except as otherwise provided by law, all personal actions, except actions for slander or libel, may be brought only within 3 years of the act or omission complained of.” New Hampshire courts may well take this approach.

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#134:  30-Day Accountings for Subcontractor/Supplier Mechanic’s Liens

NH Construction Law

It is generally recognized by New Hampshire courts that “[f]ailure to comply with the specific statutory provisions of perfecting a mechanics lien is usually fatal,” Alex Builders & Sons, Inc. 536, 537 (1898), and owners need to know the amount of those claims in order to do so intelligently. Danley , 161 N.H.

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#109:  Liability Insurers' Duty to Defend

NH Construction Law

1990) (applying New Hampshire law) (“If some of the claims against the insured fall within the terms of coverage, and some without, the insured must still defend the entire claim (at least until it is apparent that no recovery under the covered theory can be had).”) City of Keene , 898 F.2d

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#107:  "Prevailing Party" Attorneys' Fees Provisions

NH Construction Law

in attorneys’ fees to a homeowner who sued for $12,400 and won a $6,800 jury verdict on a breach of contract claim. I have seen several New Hampshire courts cut down an award of fees where outcome and bill are wildly disparate. A recent case from Tennessee affirmed an award of $201,255.50 Issa Construction, LLC, v.

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#112:  Owners' Implied Warranty Rights Against Subcontractors

NH Construction Law

2018) (“The purchaser of a newly constructed home may not pursue a claim for breach of an implied warranty of habitability against a subcontractor where there is no contractual relationship.”). Still other courts allow homeowners to bring negligence claims against subcontractors regardless of recourse against the builder-vendor.

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#76:  Indemnity and the Statute of Repose

NH Construction Law

In this respect it is unlike the statute of limitations, RSA 508:4 , whose three-year clock does not start ticking until the claim “accrues” -- which may be more than three years after the breach of duty occurs if the breach and resulting injury were neither discovered nor reasonably discoverable until later.

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