Construction & Claims: April 2023

Welcome to Construction & Claims, a periodic digest of the headlines, statutory and regulatory changes and court cases involving construction news, claims, bid protests, contract administration and payment-related disputes.

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Cell-Crete Corporation v. Federal Insurance Company

In this case, the Court of Appeal examined whether a payment bond surety, who prevails in a claim against the payment bond, is entitled to statutory attorneys' fees when the party actually incurring the attorneys' fees was the general contractor, pursuant to its defense and indemnity obligations, as opposed to the surety itself. The Court explained that a judge must award reasonable attorneys' fees to the prevailing party regardless of whether the prevailing party ultimately is responsible for paying the fees. This case clarifies that prevailing payment bond sureties, even if defended by the