Reese J. Henderson, Jr. and Arnold D. Tritt, Jr. are pleased to announce that on September 1, 2009, attorney Christopher M. Cobb became the newest shareholder of Tritt|Henderson.  Over the past few years, Chris has continually shown both our clients and the firm his dedication and commitment to the practice of construction law and the representation of the construction industry.  Of equal importance has been Chris' mentoring of younger attorneys at the firm.  "There is no question that Chris has earned it and Reese and I are both honored to have him join us as a shareholder," said Arnold Tritt. 

  In addition to recently becoming a shareholder in the firm, Christopher Cobb has obtained Florida Bar Board Certification in Construction Law.  Christopher joins Reese J. Henderson, Jr. and Arnold D. Tritt, Jr. as Florida Bar Board Certified in Construction Law.  According to The Florida Bar, board certification is the highest level of recognition given for competency and experience within an area of law.  Attorneys can achieve this distinction after a minimum of five years of practicing in a particular area of law, passing a strenuous examination and a undergoing a stringent peer review process. 
  "Chris becoming a Florida Bar Board Certified Construction Lawyer further confirms to our clients and the public that construction law is his focus and his passion," says managing partner Arnold Tritt.  "Chris' achievement shows his commitment and further differentiates Chris and our firm in the practice of construction law."

 

By: Reese J. Henderson, Jr., Esquire
 
  Modern litigation is expensive.  Attorney's fees comprise a large portion of the cost, but are not the only significant cost.  Increasingly, expert witnesses are needed to address technical design and means and methods issues.  Expert witness fees can, in some instances, equal the amount of attorney's fees invested, effectively doubling the cost of litigation to the litigant.  These costs can reach into six figures in many cases.  The importance of being able to recover these costs if successful at trial cannot be overstated.
  All too often, however, recovery of attorney's fees and expert witness fees is overlooked when the parties negotiate their construction contracts.  Many do not realize, for example, that the form construction contracts published by the American Institute of Architects do not provide for attorney's fees.  Thus, if you are working under an unmodified AIA A101, for example, you have no ability to recover your attorney's fees if you bring a lawsuit (or arbitration) under the contract.
  There are three main sources for recovery of attorney's fees in the typical construction case.  First, there is the contract itself.  A well-drafted attorney's fees clause will provide for recovery of attorney's fees by the prevailing party in any arbitration or lawsuit arising out of the contract, and will include expert witness fees as recoverable expenses in addition to attorney's fees.  This is important because such a contractual clause is the only way to recover expert witness fees.  The other two methods described below do not allow for recovery of expert witness expenses.
  The second source for recovery of attorney's fees is found in Chapter 713, Florida Statutes.  Section 713.29, Florida Statutes, provides for recovery of "a reasonable fee for the services of her or his attorney for trial and appeal or for arbitration" in any action to enforce a construction lien or a claim against a payment bond.  The good news is any party with a valid lien or bond claim may recover his or her attorney's fees even in the absence of an attorney's fees clause in the underlying contract.  The bad news is this right is lost if the lien or bond claim is waived, released or lost for some technical reason.
  The third source for recovering attorney's fees is a mechanism known as a "proposal for settlement", which becomes available after a lawsuit is filed.  It requires the making of a settlement offer to the opposing party which is not accepted within 30 days. This mechanism provides the offering party the ability to recover attorney's fees, but only if he or she prevails at trial by an amount that is 25% more or less than (depending on which party made the offer) the offer made.  In that case, attorney's fees are recoverable starting from the date on which the offer was made. 
  So remember, carefully review your construction contracts and make sure you include an attorney's and expert witness' fees clause.  It may be the most important change you make!
 

This summer, Tritt|Henderson invited Dr. Charles K. Bens, Ph.D. to speak to our clients regarding "Food as Medicine".  His workshop discussed food as something much more than just the next meal or the snack that is readily available and tasty. Dr. Bens helped to change the way that we think about food forever, and hopefully led people to make changes in their diet that will in turn lead to a longer and a healthier life. If it is true that "without your health you have nothing" then this workshop helped move nutrition to the number one priority in our lives. We hope that those who were able to attend got as much out of Dr. Ben's presentation as we did and we hope to be able to offer more of these types of events to our clients in the future.

 

 

We look forward to another fun evening for our 5th Annual Groundhog Day Party on Thursday, February 4, 2010!  Mark your calendars now and be sure to look for all of the details in our 2010 1st Quarter Newsletter in January!