Construction

In residential construction disputes, the legislature has mandated that the parties utilize an alternative dispute resolution (ADR) procedure that, hopefully, will cut down on litigation.

Whenever you hire a contractor to work on your property, you should make sure he or she (or their firm) is duly licensed.  Doing work without a license can have major consequences -- for both sides.

The court of appeal has ruled that a homeowner who employs an unlicensed contractor may not only successfully defend against the contractor’s collection action, but in addition, the homeowner has the right to obtain a full refund of all funds paid to the contractor who worked without the requisite l...