News and Events
Restoration of Surety’s Right to Enforce Conditional Payment Clauses on State Projects
A discernible shift has emerged in the last decade in favor of sureties asserting conditional payment clauses as a defense to payment bond claims on state public projects. For more than a half-century, state and federal courts almost universally ruled that a surety could not enforce its principal’s pay-if-paid or pay-when-paid clause in defense of a claim against the bond. To this day, federal courts continue to neglect traditional suretyship principles in favor of the public policy underlying the Miller Act on federal projects.
Riess LeMieux Ranked in 2020 “Best Law Firms”
Riess LeMieux has been ranked in the 2020 U.S. News – Best Lawyers® “Best Law Firms” list regionally in the area of Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law. This is the tenth consecutive year that U.S. News & World Report and Best Lawyers® announce the “Best Law Firms” rankings.
Christopher LeMieux Will Present an Arbitration Presentation Called Charting a Course in Unfamiliar Waters
Christopher K. LeMieux will present at the CLE program entitled Charting a Course in Unfamiliar Waters - Tips for Winning Your Case in Arbitration on Thursday, December 5, 2019. Chris will speak on Protecting and Enforcing Your Arbitration Award. The presentation will take place at the Hyatt Centric French Quarter Hotel, 800 Iberville St., New Orleans at 1:15-2:00 p.m. The Louisiana State Bar Association is promoting the program and attendees are eligible for CLE credit.
Case Update: Leblanc Marine, LLC v. State of Louisiana (La. Oct. 2019)
The Louisiana Supreme Court recently provided clarity in a muddled area of the Public Bid Law jurisprudence, holding that public bidding requirements that are inconsistent or in conflict with the Public Bid Law are invalid. Public entities have long advertised bidding requirements beyond the Public Bid Law requirements when they seek bids for public work projects. Since the Louisiana Supreme Court’s 2006 Hamp’s decision, it was clear public entities could not waive any advertised bidding requirement, even if considered insignificant, because the Public Bid Law expressly precludes waiving advertised bidding requirements. Thus, a bidder who failed to comply with an advertised bidding requirement could not be awarded a contract.
Michael Blackwell Will Present at the Construction Management Association of America Professional Development Session
Michael Blackwell will present "Recent Developments in Louisiana Construction Law" at the Construction Management Association of America (CMAA) Professional Development Session on Thursday, October 24 from 11:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. Michael's presentation will cover recent trends regarding the construction law landscape for both public and private sector clients. In addition, he will get you up-to-date on the latest happenings and provide insight into how to avoid issues and protect yourself during the construction process.
Case Update: Barbara Technologies Corp. v. State Farm Lloyds and Ortiz v. State Farm Lloyds (Tex. 2019)
The Supreme Court of Texas dealt a heavy blow to insurers with two opinions that will subject insurance companies to steep damages for violating Texas’ Prompt Pay statute (TPPCA) when the insurer invokes an appraisal clause and does not pay within the 60-day window required by statute. Additional damages including up to 18% annual interest on past-due amounts pursuant are recoverable by the insured when the insurance company pays in accordance with an appraisal but is found liable under the policy. In Barbara Technologies Corp. v. State Farm Lloyds, the Texas Supreme Court reversed several years of precedent, while Ortiz v. State Farm Lloyds illustrates how the rule is applied.
Riess LeMieux Welcomes Michael Blackwell to the Firm
Riess LeMieux is pleased to welcome Michael Blackwell to the firm. Michael brings experience in Commercial Litigation, Construction Law, Governmental Contracts and Surety Law, and Real Estate Law. He also regularly lectures on these matters. The firm is excited about the experience and energy that he brings to the firm.
Riess LeMieux Partner, Christopher LeMieux, Named to 2020 Best Lawyers® in America List
Riess LeMieux, LLC is pleased to announce that Christopher K. LeMieux has been named to the 2020 Edition of Best Lawyers in America. Chris is being recognized in the areas of Construction Law and Litigation - Construction. Congratulations to Chris for this highly regarded honor.