Inspections an issue in construction defects cases

Erin Neff

Friday, March 21, 2003 | 11:06 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- State Sen. Mike Schneider took on trial attorneys Thursday with photos he claimed showed crews hired by attorneys creating construction defects during an inspection to find them.

Schneider, D-North Las Vegas, is sponsoring Senate Bill 273, which would require contractors to be present at all inspections after a lawsuit has been filed. The photos he showed were of inspectors putting additional tiles on top of others on a roof to create the appearance that the tiles on top were slipping.

Schneider refused to discuss the origin of the photos, and trial lawyers in the audience scoffed at the Power Point presentation. They said the photos prove nothing. They wondered how such allegedly fraudulent behavior was caught on film, who the lawyers were and what the case was, if there was such a case.

Bob Maddox of the Nevada Trial Lawyers Association said if the construction defect alleged in the photo were one of his potential cases, "I wouldn't touch something like that."

"Insurance companies don't give money away," Maddox said.

Assembly Minority Leader Lynn Hettrick, R-Gardnerville, testified on behalf of Schneider's bill by relating a personal story about problems at a condo he owns in Las Vegas.

Hettrick said a new manager of the condo hired a company to inspect for potential defects. When the homeowners association met to hear the results, they were told of a state law that requires repair of any identified defect before the property can be sold.

At that point, Hettrick said, a law firm representative explained that the firm could sue the contractors to win money for the repairs. All members of the homeowners association voted to go with the lawsuit, except Hettrick, who abstained.

"There appears to be collusion with property managers going into these homeowners associations," Schneider testified. "A story is spun and woven to scare people into construction defect litigation."

David Duritsa, a member of a coalition group called Safe Homes Nevada, who was active in the Craig Ranch Village Homeowners Association during a construction defect claim, spoke out against the bill.

"Requiring an inspection is just one more roadblock," Duritsa said.

Maddox argued that Schneider's bill wasn't needed because both contractors' and plaintiffs' attorneys are allowed to attend inspections as part of discovery in the cases.

Maddox said that because there is no way to compel a contractor to attend an inspection, he didn't think such a law would be enforceable.

The hearing capped the second day of testimony in the Senate Commerce and Labor Committee on construction defect litigation bills. No action was taken on any of the measures.