Proposed SB 510, and related HB 35, would add a new statute to Florida’s general labor regulations laws, directed at employers and employees working in hot, outdoor environments. The proposed statute imposes a number of new responsibilities on employers, including requiring training on heat illness, providing a minimum amount of accessible and free drinking water, and providing access to shade or cooler areas. The If enacted, the statute would take effect October 1, 2025.

Proposed HB 117 would create a new section within Florida’s home solicitation sales statutes to impose certain requirements on unlicensed contractors making improvements to residential property. The statute, which applies to contractors who are not required to be licensed under Part I, Chapter 489, Florida Statutes, imposes timelines for starting the work, applying for permits, and continuing work at a project and creates criminal penalties for failing to comply with the statute. If enacted, the statute would take effect July 1, 2025.

Florida’s Third DCA reversed a trial court’s ruling that a property owner could seek punitive damages from a roadway contractor that improperly used the owner’s property as a staging area for construction. While the trial court found that the contractor had acted intentionally, the appellate court noted that to pursue punitive damages against a corporate entity, additional evidence of corporate involvement needed to be presented and was not.

Florida’s First District Court of Appeal recently reversed a trial court’s denial of a general contractor’s motion for attorneys’ fees filed against a stucco subcontractor, finding that the apportionment of damages in primary claims between the property owner and general contractor should have no bearing on the prevailing party status of the general contractor on third-party claims against subcontractors.

Proposed SB 658 would modify 713.20, Florida Statutes, which governs the form and content of construction lien releases, to make the use of the statutory forms mandatory. If enacted, the new law would take effect July 1, 2025.

Proposed SB 346 would delete a provision of 489.113, Florida Statutes, that previously reserved regulation of hoisting equipment including power-operated cranes, derricks, hoists, elevators, and conveyors used in construction, demolition, or excavation work, to the State of Florida. If enacted, the changes would take place July 1, 2025.

Proposed HB 453 would modify 489.105 by changing the definitions of commercial pool/spa contractor, residential pool/spa contractor, and "swimming pool/spa servicing contractor. If enacted, the changes would take effect July 1, 2025.

11th Circuit court of appeal reverses dismissal with prejudice of breach of contract and copyright claims asserted by architect, finding that factual issues surrounding the basis for termination preclude disposition of the claims on a motion to dismiss. The court found this to be the case despite the existence of a termination for convenience provision in the contract.

11th Circuit affirms delay damages award to subcontractor despite the existence of a “no-damages-for-delay” provision in the subcontractor agreement, finding that general contractor was aware of conditions causing delays and potential solutions, but did not enact those solutions. The opinion provides a thorough analysis of the types of damages awardable under these provisions and the causal link necessary to prove delay damages.

Appellate court reverses judgment and finds that electrical contractor was properly licensed to perform excavation as part of its scope of work when installing underground electrical work. The reversal turn largely on the trial court’s improper application of Part I of Chapter 489, Florida Statutes, to electrical contractors, when they are governed by Part II of Chapter 489, Florida Statutes.

In affirming the imposition of fines for unlicensed contracting, the Court held that a formal administrative hearing is necessary only where the material facts are in dispute.

The appeal arises from a dispute over a failed delivery of garage doors. After a default was entered against the subcontractor, it continued to oppose a motion for summary judgment filed by the general contractor, arguing that the default did not preclude it from contesting the amount of damages to which the general contractor was entitled.

The request came five and a half years into litigation and the denial resulted in summary judgment in favor of a shell contractor attempting to foreclose a $220,000.00 lien.

The decision confirms that where a surety enters into a settlement payment with a project owner, the contractor is entitled to setoff that payment against a subsequent judgment obtained against a contractor for the same damages.

In a short opinion, Florida’s Third District Court of Appeal affirmed a final judgment foreclosing a lien in favor of a general contractor. While the opinion is short and without elaboration, reviewing the underlying trial docket raises questions about the acceptable forms for contractor’s payment affidavits and pleading affirmative defenses relating to lien claims.

Since 2019, roofing contractors in Florida have been subject to a litany of new regulations, including restrictions on advertising methods and certain disclosure requirements in their contracts. On May 2, 2024, Governor DeSantis signed HB 939, which becomes law on July 1, 2024. The new statute imposes new disclosure requirements on roofing contractors and gives homeowners new contract cancellation rights. Roofing contractors in Florida need to evaluate their contracts and contact their attorneys to ensure they comply with the new requirements.

The decision issued by Florida’s Fourth District Court of Appeal found that where a property owner alleged in its complaint that the lien should be discharged due to the contractor’s failure to serve a notice to owner, 713.21(4) did not apply.

The latest in a series of decisions by the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals confirms an insurers duty to defend contractors against complaints of defective work and damages during construction. The three appeals, stretching from 2019 through 2024, provide a lot of insight into the importance of the allegations of the complaint, how coverage can be affected by them, and the breadth of the duty to defend even where coverage may be questionable.

The contractor amended its construction lien, which was then transferred to a bond and contested by the property owner after the start of litigation. When the contractor failed to add the bond’s surety to the lawsuit within 60 days, the property owner sought summary judgment and obtained an order finding the lien was extinguished based on the operation of two sections of Florida’s Construction Lien law.

The changes affects plan requirements for window, door, and garage door replacements; make changes to the sections governing private providers; impose new deadlines for permit application approvals and penalties for failing to meet them; and new standards for certain unvented spaces.