By:  Bob Bramlette, Income Member Our state still can’t pass a budget! Illinois universities, high schools and grade schools continue to receive less funding from Springfield. The unfunded pension obligation for Chicago Public School teachers is astronomical. As a result, local school taxing bodies are forced to request more from […]

By:  Werner Sabo, Of Counsel In late April 2017, the AIA released new versions of its flagship documents, including several owner-architect agreements. This article will examine a few of the more important revisions. A prior article dealt with a revision to the percentage-based fee provision, so that will not be […]

By:  Joe Eichberger, Income Member This is a brief review of the enforceability of assumption of risk agreements in Illinois and their impact on the amusement ride/waterpark industry. This review is limited to express or written assumption of risk agreements. Typically a patron, as a precondition to entry upon the […]

By: Geoff Bryce, Capital Member On Feb. 17, the Illinois Appellate Court issued an important ruling regarding the implied warranty of habitability. Sienna Court Condominium Ass ‘n v. Champion Aluminum Corp., 2017 IL App (1st) 143364. The court confirmed that the implied warranty of habitability does not extend to design […]

By: Juan Anderson, Income Member While technology has vastly improved the means and methods of construction, the business of the industry remains trapped deep in the previous century. With owners, general contractors, and subcontractors mired in paperwork and manual processing, an efficient, accessible, and accurate solution is now taking hold. […]

By: Werner Sabo, Of Counsel In late April 2017, the AIA released new versions of its flagship documents, including several owner-architect agreements. One provision found in the new 2017 version of various owner-architect agreements (such as B101 and B103) defines how the architect is to be paid when the fee […]

By: Jim Zahn, Of Counsel The National Council of Architectural Registration Boards, NCARB, is comprised of architectural registration boards of all fifty states, as well as those of the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands.  NCARB assists the member boards in carrying out their duties […]

By: Werner Sabo, Of Counsel Many contracts contain a dispute resolution provision that provides that, in the event of a dispute among the parties, that dispute will be resolved by arbitration and not litigation. There are a number of reasons to use this procedure. One is the relative speed of […]

By: Bob Bramlette, Income Member Entrepreneurs want to purchase a business for many reasons: increase revenues, acquire a new product or service line to compliment current operations, enter a new market, acquire intellectual property, acquire talent…the list is endless. One important question to ask is “how much should I pay?” […]

By: Werner Sabo, Of Counsel In a recent article, Who Needs Builder’s Risk Insurance, Geoff Bryce wrote about a recent Illinois case with large damages. This article will expand on the case, with an emphasis on the AIA form documents. A welder working at a construction site started a fire. […]