Every owner, contractor, or other construction-focused party who has achieved profitability and success in the construction industry would likely agree with the following: in construction, time is money.
The quicker the project is successfully completed, the happier the owner is, the more profitable the general contractor and subcontractors are, and the quicker the material suppliers, equipment lessors, and other related parties are paid and can move on to the next project. Time undoubtedly equals money in construction.
When the as-planned schedule for construction projects extends past the planned completion date, there are often claims various parties bring, which the industry has commonly titled as “extended duration” or “delay claims.”
These claims focus on the extended home office overhead that a contractor commits to a project past the time they figured into their bid. This overhead cost is sometimes calculated using the Eichleay formula, which focuses on the lost home office overhead due to work stoppages and/or delays that caused the project to extend for additional days. This formula usually does not include weather delays, as they are generally considered to be non-compensable.
Extended duration/delay claims also consider the increased cost of labor and materials during the additional time a contractor has been forced to provide them for a project—over and above the original schedule and bid. Before you sign a construction contract or attempt to make a delay claim, it is important to get the advice of an experienced construction lawyer because some contracts contain onerous notice requirements precedent to recovering delay damages, and sometimes there are delay and/or lien waivers.
Our construction lawyers are experienced and ready to assist owners and construction companies in prosecuting and defending against extended duration/delay claims. Our construction lawyers have years of experience in multi-million-dollar delay claim litigation and can readily assist you with experienced, nuanced counsel on delay damages.
Contact our office in New Orleans to discuss your claim with a highly-rated and experienced lawyer. You can reach Scott Vicknair, LLC by phone at (504) 500-1111 or by sending us a message using our online form.