Foes under defects law unite to push for its change

Builders, subcontractors agree assured plaintiffs’ attorneys fees spur suits against them

Tiffany Brown

Technician Rich Parker, left, and Jack Ramsay of Sierra Air Conditioning check out a unit at a house involved in a lawsuit. Ramsay is there because he received notice from the builder, which had received a letter from the homeowner’s attorney complaining of problems.

By J. Patrick Coolican (contact), David McGrath Schwartz (contact)

Tuesday, March 24, 2009 | 2 a.m.

Four homebuilders settle in plumbing lawsuit (3-18-2009)
Homebuilder accuses LV company of home inspection fraud (3-16-2009)
Homebuilders worry as lawmakers search for revenue (3-6-2009)
Builders hammer away for changes in defect law (5-2-2003)
Trapped by lawsuits, subcontractors seek relief (2-22-2009)
Should construction-defect laws be overhauled? (2-9-2001)

Nevada Statutes: Chapter 40

Archive of Sun politics stories

Real Estate in Crisis

Another day, another construction defect notice. That’s the routine for Jack Ramsay, a founding partner and vice president of Sierra Air Conditioning, which installs AC units in new homes.

In the vast majority of the homes, Ramsay says, nothing is wrong with the air conditioning.

Still, Ramsay has to send a technician out to the homes, where other subcontractors also are crawling around the property looking for problems alleged by the homeowner’s attorney. Tom Williams, a representative of Milgard Windows, is also at this Henderson house even though his company’s windows were not used on the home.

Ramsay, Williams and the others are there because they got a notice from Lennar Corp., which had received a letter from the homeowner’s attorney complaining of problems. The letter included a reference to problems with heating and cooling.

Lennar, in turn, sent out a notice to its subcontractors, and here they are.

Ramsay says nothing is wrong with the air-conditioning unit at the home, which is about a decade old, unless you count some insulation tape missing from the copper line that runs from the unit into the house. Ramsay thinks the family pet chewed it.

Ramsay asks Lennar’s representative, seemingly half in jest, to take his company off the suit.

“Can’t do it,” says Pete Selter, an area manager for Lennar.

If all subcontractors stay on the complaint, they or their insurers will all share the cost of the guaranteed legal fees that go to homeowners’ attorneys.

Does this all sound crazy?

The construction industry, already reeling from the worst residential housing recession in state history, also deals with a constant stream of construction defect notices.

That this would happen is no surprise.

Southern Nevada’s 20 years of rapid growth, a shortage of skilled craftsmen and difficult working conditions led to some slipshod building, though it’s unknown how many structures are bad. Civil attorneys estimate 31,000 Clark County homes need replacement of faulty Kitec brass pipe fittings, for instance.

But builders and subcontractors cite another culprit: Guaranteed fees for experts and attorneys for the plaintiffs. Those fees give construction defect law firms perverse incentives to bring suits, builders say.

Plaintiffs’ attorneys say builders and subcontractors could cut down on their legal fees if they built fewer defective homes, and they note that the court can deny attorneys fees and award them to the contractor if it finds the plaintiff “unreasonably rejects a reasonable ... settlement.”

The law governing construction defect suits, known as Chapter 40 for its place in Nevada statutes, was a compromise developed during the mid-’90s building boom, a process to resolve disputes before litigation.

As part of the compromise, homeowners who file lawsuits can’t claim noneconomic damages, such as emotional distress. On the other hand, builders are obligated to pay the homeowners’ costs of bringing the lawsuits, provided the homeowner agrees to a reasonable settlement.

Builders now want the Legislature to change the law. They want to eliminate Chapter 40 and those guaranteed attorneys fees, and they’ve enlisted the subcontractors as their allies at the Legislature.

In the drive to repeal Chapter 40, homebuilders and the subcontractors would seem to be unlikely allies, and their alliance offers a window into the shifting dynamics of legislative politics.

In fact, in 2007, the subcontractors sought indemnification provisions that would have offered some protection from lawsuits. They were crushed by the powerful homebuilding industry, which wants as many parties to the suits as possible so as to spread the cost.

But in politics, there are no permanent friends and no permanent enemies, so the two have joined forces this year to fight the plaintiffs’ attorneys.

Craig Marquiz, general counsel for the Nevada Subcontractors Association, said the indemnification idea is merely a Band-Aid.

“Indemnification only addresses the issue of who pays, not what is being paid for,” Marquiz said. “It comes back to entitlement of attorney fees. Incentive is essentially what motivates these firms to bring claims, whether they are legitimate or not.”

Not true, say the trial lawyers. The construction defect attorneys say the real motivation from the builders is to eliminate the right of homeowners to get their broken homes fixed.

Repealing Chapter 40 would deal a severe blow to the rights of homeowners, said Scott Canepa, one of the state’s most respected construction defect litigators. Without Chapter 40, Nevada case law denies homeowners the right to sue for negligence.

Instead, they could sue only for breach of contract, Canepa said. Builders would force homebuyers to sign bad contracts that protect the homebuilder from liability. No lawyer would take any case for the homeowner without a significant retainer, which most people — especially now — can’t afford, Canepa said.

The plaintiffs’ attorneys will get a sympathetic hearing from Assembly Democrats.

Plus, the coalition between subcontractors and builders is “fragile,” according to one lobbyist on the side of the builders’ coalition.

Lobbyists expect the coalition to get some legislation out of the state Senate that would deal with the guaranteed attorneys fees. As a counteroffer, Assembly Democrats and plaintiffs’ attorneys would then propose some lawsuit protection for subcontractors.

A trial attorney lobbyist speculated that subcontractors would be happy to run with such an offer.

But if that happens, their homebuilder masters would probably succeed in killing the legislation, as they did in 2007.

And the issue would have come full circle.

Nonsense, says James Wadhams, a lobbyist for the homebuilders.

“The subcontractors we work with know we’re in this business together,” he said. “This issue of dealing with indemnity between general and subcontractors is a red herring.”

He said the issue has been raised by the trial attorneys “to splinter the coalition and distract from the issues at hand: getting homes repaired quickly or going to court.”

Discussion: 19 comments so far…

By bdover

3/24/09 at 7:08 a.m.

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I live in a Henderson subdivision, a new house in 2001. I have gotten frequent letters from some ambulance chasing attorneys asking me to attend meetings regarding our "serious" construction defects. The problem is that I have had no serious defects. One crack due to minor settlement at a window-I fixed it in 2 minutes while repainting the house. I have spoken with 5 neighbors-all have had no problems. I work in construction, 2 of my neighbors do, too. The letters include "suggested" problems with pictures and descriptions. IMHO, the lawyers are tempting upside down disgruntled homeowners to invent problems, so the lawyers can generate fees. And the homeowners probably think they might get a cash settlement. We're not talking Kitec here, which was a serious problem. No doubt-this is just another racket by attorneys who can't keep their hands in their own pockets...
By KillerB

3/24/09 at 9:19 a.m.

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Shakespeare's Dick the Butcher was right: "The first thing we do, let's kill all the lawyers."

For you footnoters, it's from Henry The Sixth, Part 2 Act 4, scene 2, 71--78

Since
By cityoflightsNV

3/24/09 at 10:04 a.m.

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I live in Summerlin. My house is now about 7 years old. Amazing as to how many Law Firms have solicited my home with fliers and our HOA board to have a Construction Defect Lawsuit. I could not be happier with our home and the builder who built it. We have had only two issues since our purchase. One was a roof leak 3 years ago where the builder and subcontractor fixed it the next day after my call. They even tested for mold (none) and painted the whole ceiling. Not much damage but they fixed it correctly. The other was a door that would not close properly. Again they fixed without any issue and asked me if we were happy.

I have seen this stuff going on for a long time in Nevada. These laws were set up for the Lawyers to make money. Who is kidding who? They trump up the list of defects just so they can work the system. We have over 160 families in my subdivision and I have heard of only one home that had gotten involved with these guys. These poor people got pillaged by the Law Firm who left them no where near what the stated defects were to get anything remotely fixed. They had a perfectly good home to start with that is now worth less because of greed by Lawyers. Look at the FBI Corruption probe right now to what these Lawyers did to the HOA at Vistana and many others.

I am glad to see this being fixed. I hope the Democratic Assembly does something to fix this. It is flat wrong from this article sounds like to me the Lawyers think they have our politicians in their pockets. They fixed the Doctors in Nevada's problems and now its time to fix another The Homebuilding Industry that creates jobs in Nevada. How many jobs does a law firm produce? God forbid you rear end someone on the highway today. A minor fender bender will cost your insurance dearly. See the comparison. We need to run these bad apples out of the state.
By mcmc_john

3/24/09 at 11:11 a.m.

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In this article the subcontractors in Nevada state that they are being taken advantage of by homeowners attorney's in the Chapter 40 process. They claim that the Chapter 40 law holds them responsible for work that they did not do. This is just untrue, it is the builders who call for all subcontractors to be part of any Chapter 40 claim ... not the plaintiffs attorney's.

Almost all home builders have a clause in their contracts called the "harm harmless"clause. Which basically states that a contractor has to hold the builder harmless if the builder is sued or suffers any losses no matter what those losses are, or who caused them.

If the subcontractors feel that these clause's are creating a harmful environment, then all they need to do is not sign the contract. Nobody makes them sign the contract. Why should the legislature interfere with their contractual agreement? I think the subcontractors should either 'man up' and don't sign it or sign it and stop crying.

The builders believe this clause is important because each contractor should be vigilant on the job to report any code deficiencies.

Builders believe it is the only clause that will keep subcontractors from covering up mistakes by other trades. Remove this clause and the quality of home building will take another dive to the bottom of the qualified gene pool and every honest contractor will have to follow in order to survive.

Builders do not build homes, subcontractors do. Subcontractors who feel the builders who uses poor qualified subcontractors, who in bad faith fail to produce code compliant homes, should refuse to work with that builder.

Subcontractor's cries for relief by the legislation should fall on deaf ears.

Builder's should press the legislature for mandated 'state approved' training or suffer losses for the poor quality work that they allow to be passed onto home buyers.
By Bertsos

3/24/09 at 1:47 p.m.

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The lawyers are just out trying to stir up people and get them to sign on to some fabricated defects lawsuit............no surprise that some of the same local atorneys who do the construction defects lawsuits are also ambulance chasers.

With the ongoing personal injury scam being undertaken by the feds...........I would love to see the Feds look into these bogus fabrications on defects.
By LV1Team

3/24/09 at 3:44 p.m.

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One only has to look so high to see who is a Lawyer and makes his money by praying off of homeowners. The only defect is in the law!!

I live in a Condo Project here in Las Vegas. Our HOA Board and Managers brought in a Construction Defect firm to look at truly maintenance issues. The property looked great and was about 7 years old at the time. These guys went around attempting to find out from anyone that would give them the time of day if they were unhappy with their homes. Very few had issues with the builder as they had always stepped up to the plate. The HOA Board went forward with this drummed up lawsuit with no vote from the residents. They got maybe 10 people to join in to the lawsuit. What a joke. They got a Class Action. They had the poor builder and all of the subcontractors out here for months wasting their time & hard earned money making repairs that were not even needed. The thing set in the court system for 2+ years with all these false allegations and the lawyers getting everyone to point the finger at each other. They were on roofs pulling off tiles, spraying water with high pressure on the windows and pulling off drywall.

In the end they got $4 Million which the HOA board only received less than $ 1.3 Million and they truly fixed nothing. Sure they put a coat of paint on this and that. Re oiled our streets but in the end nothing was wrong. I tried to sell my unit 2 years ago as I new the values had risen way above what I had paid for it. Only to find out that not a single lender would touch the thing because of the alleged Construction Defects on it. Every time I was asked if I had fixed the defects I stated what defects. No lender No Sale. Many of my neighbors have lost a ton as they had to sell to move. It truly brought our fine homes down in value. We now have many people who are just renters. When I move I will have to rent mine. Who made the money. The Lawyers that's who!

Its brought on by the Lawyers. Its just like the Ambulance Chaser he knows the insurance company is going to pay so he drums up the neck and back injury by going to some bone cruncher for months at a time to make the settlement bigger. Same exact thing.Good thing our economy has crashed here as my kids would have never owned a home after this group came into Las Vegas. People do have issues with homes just call the Nevada State Contractors Board as I had done in the past. Worked great!Contractors Board did a great job and the builder made the repair as the subcontractor had went out of business.

The Democrats in power will fix this in the Assembly as they should have long ago. It's bad law for homeowners and our HOA's have way to much power. Just look at all the new coverage in the papers about the HOA's and the Lawyers.

I wish the FBI would look into our HOA to see what they pulled.
By bdover

3/24/09 at 5:35 p.m.

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"Glen Lerner is the place to go, call 1-877-1500." Glen, please go back to Boston. Your mobbed up old man misses you at Holy Cross Cemetery. And we won't miss your accent-It's "wicked hot heah"...
By dtw

3/24/09 at 5:39 p.m.

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mcmc_john. You are correct. Every contract has the indemnification clause in it. No one is forcing us to sign this contract, but if we want to do business in Las Vegas, then eventually we will have to sign the contract. In this economy, it is difficult to be picky on which builders you are willing to work for when you're doing everything you can to keep your doors open.

The biggest problem with this contract is that there can be absolutely nothing wrong with the product that you have put into a particular home, or sold to a builder, but in the end you will still have to pay out $. If you did nothing wrong, why would you have to pay you ask? Most businesses will settle because it is less expensive to settle then to continue paying to defend your business, or your product. Defect attorneys don't want you to fix issues in their client's homes. They could care less, and NRS CH.40 is easy enough for them to manipulate, so they let it drag on and on while the bills keep racking up.

I have been to over 100 of these inspections, and what I find the most is that many homeowners don't know how to maintain their homes. A small crack in the drywall is an easy fix with some sealant and a little paint. It doesn't have to become a Chapter 40. Most of the things that I see wrong with these homes are things that the subcontractors would fix at no cost if the homeowner had taken the time to contact them.

Don't get me wrong though! If you have some serious issues with your house, and you have exhausted every means of getting it fixed, then you should SEEK an attorney to protect your interest.

It is time for our government to step in and do something about this issue!
By LostnLV

3/24/09 at 7:29 p.m.

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It's all about the $$$. Guaranteed Fees and Expert Costs. Run the clock don't allow repairs, lots of inspections and big checks at the end. Never do these things go to court because the courts don't have the time. Mediator just makes all condemned parties settle. Allow repairs and find more issues. Chapter 40 is just a game set up in 1995 copied from California and made better for the Plaintiffs Bar in Nevada. Get rid of it. Nevada Legislators are the laughing stock of the industry. Lawyers give you money and play you as pawns. Wake up its time to fix this issue once and for all. Homeowners First - Put the Contractors Board in place of Chapter 40. They are more than capable of policing their own. Look on the Contractors Website and see what they do to those who choose to do things wrong. Goodbye! If the case is to complex let the attorneys have at them but without the free fees and costs. Make them work for a living like all of us.
The legal system in this area smells fowl. Look at the comments for the Plaintiffs. The Assembly will protect the Plaintiffs Bar. That is very presumptive in my opinion. There are a lot of good folks elected that realize this for what it is. Time for CHANGE!!!
By mcmc_john

3/25/09 at 9:39 a.m.

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FACTS ABOUT CHAPTER 40 CLAIMS AND THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY

The truth is, constructional defects are litigated on less than 6% of all homes in Nevada. [This does not take into account the KITEC class action suit, which is a manufacturing problem and not code deficient work.]

A Chapter 40 claim saves the industry 80% of what litigation would cost.

Subcontractors would like to be released from claims or litigation that doesnt include them, or should not include them. Nevertheless, they all sign a hold harmless agreement with the builder. If they dont want to be drawn into defective construction action taken against the builder, they shouldnt sign such as agreement.

A builder includes the hold harmless clause in their contracts to ensure that each contractor is cognizant of the work performed by adjoining trades in hopes of increasing code compliance. Without this instrument, contractors would cheat and allow cheating by covering up defective work.

Did you know that the Nevada State Contractors Board (NSCB) has a four-year limitation on evaluating problems on homes, despite the legal warranty period of eight to ten years? Wouldnt it be prudent to extend this time limit to eight to ten years in order to discourage builders from the temptation to sell poor quality?

Qualified workers would eliminate constructional defects Chapter 40 claims and law suits wont. We should change the paradigms in the home building industry by allowing the NSCB to triple the penalty if a subcontractor refuses to enroll workers in state-approved training.

If the builders and their lovable friends (lostinvegas) would just build code compliant homes... nobody could file any claims on them.
They are the AIG of Nevada... run a bad business and then want to be bailed out...

Chapter 40 grants each homeowner three major rights that are not granted under warranty work. First, whatever time it takes the builder to repair or replace the code deficiency the homeowner adds that time onto the end of the legal warranty period. Seconds it demands both parties to produce paper work showing the problem and the repair, information needed by any homeowner at the time of the sale of their property. Third is it sets a specific time line for the work to be completed, so the homeowner does not have to wait until the builder decides to make the repairs. Which homeowner would not want to have these three protections.
By mcmc_john

3/25/09 at 9:50 a.m.

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dtw... I feel your pain. I was a contractor in new homes for 20 years. Left when I saw that home builders hire the cheapest and not the best for the buck.

Here are a few ideas our group is proposing to help trade subcontractors in the residential industry ... you should join us..

NRS 40.6887 Extend the time and powers for the Nevada State Contractors Board (NSCB) to examine homes under NRS 40 as outlined in NRS 11.190 through 11.2055 (see attachment).

It doesnt make any sense for the NSCB to be denied jurisdiction over the home for the entire legal warranty period. Without a watch dog for the consumer, contractors are stalling to complete any work outside the NSCBs 4-year jurisdictional time limit.

NRS 40.6887.3 (a) (b) eliminate the restrictions on the NSCB to empower the government agency in any Chapter 40 claim or dispute. (see attachment)

The NSCB must be the watchdog, not the spectator, in the construction industry. If they had the power to bring contractors or subcontractors to disciplinary hearings for infractions under Chapter 40 claims you would not have contractors denying claims just to stall, delay, or deny liability in hopes of frustrating the homeowner into submission. The NSCB would also be able to determine liability among the affected contractors.

NRS 40.6887.6 Increase the damage amount that the NSCB can impose on contractors that neglect to comply with minimum standards and employ craftsmen without state-approved training and certification.

A contractor that pays for state-approved training for its craftsmen is at a disadvantage with one that neglects it. This makes the industry chase the bottom feeders in order to provide competitive bids. If residential construction employers were persuaded to train, the playing field is leveled, the homebuyers receive a quality product and contractor insurance rates will decrease. We can pay more money for insurance carriers from outside the state or invest in trained workers who live in the state and support the local economy.

NRS 40.655(a) Limitation on recovery of any reasonable attorneys fees; not to exceed $2,000 for work up to mediation and not to exceed $5,000 through mediation, unless approved by the court.

There have been law firms that have taken advantage of increasing the number of claims on a home in order to increase their fees. The number of claims usually does not affect the number of hours per claim. Setting a minimum standard helps the industry and eliminates undue claims. The lawyers are not eliminated from seeking larger amounts from the courts, but cannot use a high demand of fees in order to pressure builders and contractors into submission on their claims.
By dtw

3/26/09 at 12:41 p.m.

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Below is a copy of an email from the Nevada Subcontractors Association. This is the only way we will change this flawed system. I encourage all to participate!

Two pieces of legislation challenging a flawed and broken construction litigation system will be heard before the Senate Judiciary committee next week. Both pieces of legislation were drafted by a subcommittee of Senate Judiciary and will now go before a vote of the full committee on April 1st. We need you to stand in support, physically, of the construction industry and attend this very important hearing.

Links to the two Senate bills follow.

Senate Bill 337 is a revision to the Statutes of Repose and reduces the time action may be commenced from 10 years to 6 years.

http://www.leg.state.nv.us/75th2009/Repo...

Senate Bill 349 makes various changes to NRS Chapter 40. Specifically it amends the definition of a construction defect, removes the provision for recovery of attorney fees, and requires that a claimant sign an affidavit attesting they understand the provisions of entering into construction litigation.

http://www.leg.state.nv.us/75th2009/Repo...

Details

Wednesday -- April 1, 2009

Arrive 8:00 am

Hearing scheduled for 8:30 am

The hearing will be held at the Legislative Building in Carson City, videoconferenced to the Grant Sawyer Building in Las Vegas. You may attend in either location.

Where

Nevada Legislative Building

401 South Carson Street

Carson City, Nevada

Grant Sawyer Building

555 East Washington Avenue

Las Vegas, Nevada

This is the first step in a detailed process; from committee the bills will proceed to a full vote on the Senate floor, then to the Assembly where they will be referred to committee before going to the full Assembly for a vote. Once passed by both houses of the Legislature, the bills will go to the Governor's desk for signature. Anywhere along the way the bills are subject to amendment. And you can trust there will be misinformation circulated by trial attorneys to legislators and homeowners in an attempt to kill the legislation.

If available, please wear clothing bearing your company logo. Please forward this email to your vendors/suppliers/business associates. Let's demonstrate to legislators, media, and public the diversity of support for these two pieces of landmark legislation.

This is the moment we've worked tirelessly to achieve. With the battle for Nevada's housing future at its most critical point, your help throughout this legislative process is crucial.
By LostnLV

3/26/09 at 8:01 p.m.

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mcmc_john: Wow I wondered when you would surface from the slim that you crawl in. Folks please meet John Wilson from Mojave Construction thus mcmc_john. Old John is a friend of the Construction Defect Lawyers. He is the one who if you have ever watched the news Channel 8 and Channel 3 where the guy goes around and claims all these defects and scares our Senior Citizens in to signing for issues they truly never had. Oh yes the same John Wilson that Pulte Homes filed suit against and Oh Yes William Lyon Homes. Same guy the courts are after. Wow John forgot to get that Contractors License and the required buisness license from Henderson, LV and Clark County. Oh WOW we know who we are reading about. Give it up you sounded almost like a Lawyer except you did not use the word O'Pine.
By the way you missed your news stories and you would not call back the papers for an interview. Hide behind the Blogs!!!
By mcmc_john

3/28/09 at 10:03 a.m.

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Okay now you know who I am... now who are you?

Both law suites claim a state licensed contractor cannot tell a homeowner what is code deficient on their homes... only a certificate holder from the Nevada Real Estate Division can. The only problem is that a certificate holder is prohibited by law (NAC 645D)from calling out the information that a home owner needs to file a claim under Chapter 40. So now you know why the builders and contractors want to eliminate contractors from helping homeowners..

Your name calling and false accusation is typical for someone protecting builders and subcontractors in this industry. I have been involved in over 1,000 home evaluation for homeowners and not one has filed any complaint to any agency. 50% of those homeowners filed a claim to his builder using the Chapter 40 process as outlined by the law. As of today none of the evaluation that I was involved in have gone to lawsuits.

Check your facts about the news reports and see how you mislead anyone who will listen to your smack The last exchange in the aired program on September 10, 2007 (monday following their first report on September 4, 2007) This is the exchange between Mr. Corona (investigative reporter) and Mr.Kendall (anchor for KVBC-TV). Mr.Corona "Kendall, a clarification on Friday's story. The state Contractors Board did call me back today and say that licensed contractors are available to act as consultants for home repairs. Also, the Nevada Real Estate Division, the people that license home inspectors, say that as long as someone isn't telling someone that they're doing certified inspections or even preparing certified reports they're basically in the clear"

The lawsuits will be defended by us in the court of law and for your information I did call the reporter when I read the article about William Lyons baseless lawsuit... which states again we can't help homeowners find out was is wrong with their homes. Neither of these two lawsuits that you mentioned that what we told the homeowners about code defects was false or misleading.

So lostnLV.. who are you ... and why won't you come out of the closet and show your true colors...?
By cityoflightsNV

3/29/09 at 12:09 p.m.

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Wow someone figured out who someone is. LostnLV must be fairly astute about this issue and really sees the true picture. Our Construction Defect issue arose in my complex by the Lawyers in the very same way as Mr. Wilson practices his trade. Funny this hit a deep nerve as it should. They knock on the door tell us that we have these issues, get a few to file a chapter 40 and it never goes to a lawsuit. That is for sure because the Lawyers get to mediation and the insurance companies just settle. The Chapter 40 process is wrong as it GAURANTEES FEES AND COSTS. The MORE WRONG the MORE MONEY you guys make. This is not how the American people should act. Mr. Wilson get a real job. Go out and build something as it seems you must know a little about building. Homeowners can go to the Contractors Board to get the true issues fixed. The fake ones are what you guys make up for the fluff MONEY. We homeowners are left with empty pockets, no defects that were real, and soured homes. Shame on you Mr. Wilson. LostnLV was exactly right as a nerve was hit and cut. Bleed John like you bleed the American Dream. The true issue is if the Legislature finally fixes the laws correctly for once you will be out of business and finally we homeowners can get items fixed. I agree with the new regulations as a consumer for in this terrible market condition we all will be staying in our homes for a long time. Selling will not be an option for most. Put your hands back in your own pocket John and keep them out of mine! By the way John I looked up those Channel Three news clips and you did not want to comment then as to what you were up too!
By mcmc_john

3/30/09 at 9:17 a.m.

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CityoflightsNV I was interviewed on both news reports and stated what we do and why we do it. Most subcontractors in this town want to be bailed out of poor quality work like AIG wanted to be bailed out of poor business decisions. If they would build a house without code defects then I would be out of business.

If you or any of your builder friends would ask the legislators to mandate training, certify workers or even strengthen the involvement of the State Contractors Board, then I would say builders and subcontractors care about quality and building a better home. But, every legislation that builders and subcontractors are proposing this sessesion takes away homeowners rights... not increase them.

As far as you saying it cost FEES when we and lawyers do our jobs, you are right... and it should cost those who cheat the system penalties... in some form or another... why else why would the stop cheating?

The State Contractor Board is trying this session to regain the power that they lost during the last session by the midnight move of builders. Last session the legislators got blindside and they passed a law that prohibited the NSCB from exposing to the public bad contractors ... now who would have 'thunk' that law up? Even today the NSCB cannot make any decision regarding Chapter 40's ... again a passage put into place by builders. I promote that the NSCB should be the agency to take on poor quality work in our industry.. how about you?

I have to admit that lostnLV must have been a genius... to figure out that my username mcmc_john meant MC Mojave Construction_ john ....lol...the man is a real modern day sleuth...
By LV1Team

4/5/09 at 8:11 a.m.

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Simple Solution:

Homeowner finds an issue.

Homeowner calls Nevada State Contractors Board (Not a Lawyer or So Called Expert). Contractors Board authority extended to match Staute of Repose and Statue of Limitations.

Nevada State Contractors Board (true neutral expert) inspection takes place and State determines if an issue with Builder, Subcontractor and Homeowner present is valid.
Contractors Board advises Builder/Subcontractor to make repair or no repair for Homeowner.

(Issue bigger than Contractors Board i.e.- Settling, Structural, Slab, Roof etc. advises homeowner to get an Attorney. No need for extra fees as a real Attorney and real Construction Experts will jump at the chance.) Brings in only the true parties at that time. No Extra Fees or Costs it's all settled by the true cost of the issue.

Builder/Subcontractor make the repair and Nevada State Contractors Board approves HO should be happy if not they can still sue. No Extra Incentive of Fees and Costs for Law Firm. Keeps everyone's hands in their own pockets. Builder/Subcontractor does not fix Nevada State Contractors Board takes away their license and puts them out of business. Believe me it will get the issues fixed. No need for Attorney or Construction Expert as 90%+ of all true items will be repaired.

Remember no matter whom builds something, we are all humans. Human hands with manmade products will never be perfect.

All true rights are preserved for the Homeowner, all good businesses stay in business, 90% of true issues fixed (no more frivolous issues), Homeowner saved the long wasteful process of Chapter 40, Chapter 40 not needed thus saving the State's legal system tons of wasted money on CD Claims, real attorneys will have plenty of work in itself and the Homeowner the true issue will be much happier!!!

Forget the Chapter 40 process all of you as we all know it is Driven By the Money!
It's all about the MONEY and nothing to do with the Homeowner.

"The Kitec issue is not the fault of the Builder or Subcontractor but about a product. Its bigger than that of the Nevada State Contractors Board and needs the courts to settle. What's not truly fair is the Builder and the Subcontractor are left holding the bag. Kitec was used all over the US and it seems the fittings corrode in our very nasty water. Product Liability issue and we all know it."

Stop all the non-sense in these Blogs.
By mcmc_john

4/6/09 at 9:45 a.m.

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LV1Team it seems you are on the right track, I believe the Nevada State Contractors Board should have a larger role. But I believe that Chapter 40 helps solve these problems, and should be used before one files claims with the Nevada State Contractors Board.

Some mistakes by contractors are mistakes of omission not commission. These mistakes can be fixed by honest contractors and builders. If not then the Nevada State Contractors Board should be called into the feud; And have the power to fine the contractors or remove their licenses. There is a criminal penalty for anyone who files a false claim with the Nevada State Contractors Board, so people do not file frivolous claims.

Do you really expect the NSCB to examine 50,000 homes with Kitec problems? It would take 200 inspectors one year to examine all these homes. Who would pay for these inspectors? And what would you do with them once this problems is over? Keep on paying them until the next problem? Where would we find these 200 inspectors? Solutions to problems need to be thought out completely before we institute them. Your ideas have merit, but fail to be the answer...sorry

The right to repair is the law.. and contractor should not be afraid of 'experts' unless they are hiding something. Blaming experts who expose code violations to homeowner is like speeders blaming the highway patrolman for the ticket. Here is the easy solution... build it right and you won't get sued..

FYI... contractors new that the product called Kitec should not have been used in Clark County because of the water.. but they used it anyway... so yes, contractors are and were part of the problem.
By LV1Team

4/24/09 at 3:51 p.m.

Suggest removal

Dear John,

You missed what I said. Please quit reading so fast. You have good input. What I stated above:

(Issue bigger than Contractors Board i.e.- Settling, Structural, Slab, Roof etc. advises homeowner to get an Attorney. No need for extra fees as a real Attorney and real Construction Experts will jump at the chance.) Brings in only the true parties at that time.

Hope this finally gets fixed as it is a burdensome cost to both the Taxpayers of Nevada with court costs and an Industry that is bleeding from Trial Lawyers and still nothing gets fixed. The right to repair does not work because of the Money!!

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