Blogs

Construction

Green, Sustainability and the Need for Third Party Validation

A post this weekend by our friend Andrea Goldman raises the interesting question of “why bother with LEED certification”? The post highlights a recent profile on the highly sustainable Hutton Hotel project in Nashville which elected to forego seeking LEED registration and certification. In particular, Hutton Hotel representatives are quoted as saying: Doing the government…

November 2, 2009

Business and Financial Services

Non-Competition in State Court

Virginia state courts in 2009 continued to show that the specific facts of a case can significantly influence whether a non-competition agreement will be enforced. In this Bean, Kinney & Korman article published in the BKK Business Law Newsletter, James V. Irving explains that the case Virginia Academy of Fencing, Inc. v. Sintchinov involved a former fencing instructor who allegedly solicited students away from his former employer after leaving the academy. The article notes that the court…

November 1, 2009

Business and Financial Services

Remedies for Breach of Non-Competition Agreements

Virginia employers seeking to enforce non-competition agreements often focus first on injunctive relief because money damages alone may not adequately protect customer relationships, confidential information, or goodwill. In this Bean, Kinney & Korman article published in the BKK Business Law Newsletter, James V. Irving explains that courts may issue temporary restraining orders, preliminary injunctions, and permanent injunctions to stop a former employee from continuing to violate a…

November 1, 2009

Construction

My Wood is Greener than Your Wood: Certification Battles Continue

The New York times reported this week that the “Coalition for Fair Forest Certification” has filed a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission claiming that the Forest Stewardship Council has engaged in unfair and deceptive trade practices. According to the report, the main thrust of the complaint centered on FSC’s higher levels of preserved land…

October 30, 2009

Construction

Push by Core Service Unions to Change Arlington County Form of Government

Scott McCaffrey of the Arlington Sun Gazette reported yesterday morning that the Arlington Professional Firefighters and Paramedics Association has filed the necessary paperwork (click here to view the Certificate of Receipt and Acceptance Local Referendum and the Statement of Petitioner for Local Referendum) with the Circuit Court for Arlington County to begin the petition process…

October 28, 2009

Construction

How Construction and Other Clients Can Help Themselves

Construction cases by their nature tend to involve a lot of facts, witnesses, and documents. They also tend to involve multiple parties, legal issues and arguments, and strategic procedural and motions practice. By their nature, these realities mean that construction cases can involve quite a lot of legal work and can be expensive to try.

October 26, 2009

Construction

The Great Sprinkler Debate

In one corner, we have the firefighters and sprinkler manufacturers arguing that sprinkler installation in homes and townhouses will save lives and reduce property damage. In the other corner, we have the home builders arguing that adding a sprinkler requirement is piling on more costs on an already battered industry without appreciable benefits. This debate…

October 23, 2009

Construction

Details, Details, Details: What it takes to convey an easement in Virginia

Please contact commercial leasing attorney John Kelly jkelly@beankinney.com should you have any questions concerning this article or require assistance. In the recent case of Burdette v. Brush Mountain Estates, LLC, the Virginia Supreme Court tackled head on what it takes to convey an easement. Burdette acquired two parcels of land by deed, which stated that…

October 21, 2009

Construction

DC Contractors and Construction Managers License

A recent reminder e-mail from ABC-Metro Washington highlighted that the licensing regulations for the District of Columbia have changed dramatically. Traditionally, the District of Columbia only required that home improvement contractors have a license. That has changed. The Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs now requires that general contractors and construction managers have licenses as…

October 19, 2009

Construction

Good News! More on Tax Amnesty for Virginia, Maryland and DC Residents

As a follow up from an earlier blog post discussing tax amnesty programs in the Washington Metropolitan area, Nancy Trejos’s article in the Washington Post today discussed Maryland’s tax amnesty program that extends until October 30 and Virginia’s program that gives residents until December 5. The District of Columbia has also approved a tax amnesty…

October 18, 2009