Indy Advocate Blog

EVERYTHING OLD IS NEW AGAIN OR THE CONTRACTUAL DEFENSE OF FORCE MAJEURE MAY BE BACK IN VOGUE An act of God may sound biblical and it may even be biblical, but for lawyers, it has a very contractual meaning. It is generally found in the “Force Majeure” escape clause in some contracts. It is rarely used. In Indiana there are only a handful of cases that even deal with the topic, so finding a way to apply it to our lives in January of 2020 might seem out of place. But in March

Corona Virus ...and your legal cases As of March 16, 2020, it is clear America is in the fight of its life against an invisible foe known as Covid-19 aka the coronavirus. This foreign invader grows faster than compound interest. It is a true monster with exponential superpowers. In the course of 55 days (the number of days since the first American was confirmed to have this virus to now), this virus caused one of the strongest bull markets in stock market history to lose thre

NEW HOME BUYERS BEWARE BE VERY AWARE! For most Americans, the purchase of a new home is the fulfillment of the American Dream. It’s an opportunity to own a piece of the Earth, an opportunity to build wealth and financial security. But all too often that opportunity turns into a nightmare. Even when you hire real estate professionals to guide you through the maze of potential issues, it’s easy to come out on the short end of the stick. “What could go wrong,” you ask? This

Building an energy efficient home is an exciting and sometimes daunting project. Most people in this energy minded century want their home to be as energy efficient as possible within their means. Disputes may arise during the process regarding codes and in particular the 2012 Indiana Energy and Conservation Code “Indiana Code 22-13-5 grants the Building Law Compliance Officer (formerly known as the Building Commissioner) in the Indiana Department of Homeland Security the aut

For one Indiana consumer, doing business with one of Indiana’s largest custom home builders was an absolute nightmare. At the conclusion of the construction process, the builder, Hallmark Homes, Inc., persuaded her to sign a “zero punch list” based on the builder’s promise to remediate all problems under the builder’s “bumper to bumper home warranty”. Then when she asked the builder to make good on their promise, the builder told her those issues weren’t covered under the w

Homeowners in Indiana are protected from unscrupulous contractors by a consumer protection statute called the Indiana Home Improvement Act. The statute can be found at I.C. 24-5-11-1 . While this statute is designed to protect homeowners, it can be difficult to read and comprehend. One of the more confusing aspects of this statute is that it does not tell the consumer what to do if the contractor they are working with violates the statute. In order for the consumer to take ac

Under Indiana law suppliers of labor, materials and equipment have the right, under certain circumstances, to hold and enforce a mechanic lien to insure they are paid for their efforts. Those lien rights can be quite vexing for the property owner, when payment issues arise. In order to avoid the problems associated with mechanic liens, property owners and general contractors may specify in their contracts that the contractors and subcontractors waive their rights to record