Philadelphia Construction Law Blog

At Kaplin Stewart, we strive every day to add value to the businesses of our clients and potential clients.  We are thrilled to announce the start of another one of these efforts – our construction surety law blog!  The surety industry is one which we represent regularly; and we believe that it is a niche with specific issues that merit a special comment from time to time.  So we hope you will read the blog and join the conversation.

Recent news in the surety industry suggests that demand is increasing for a different approach to bonding on projects using public-private partnerships. A significant push seems to be underway in the surety market to provide a product responsive to that demand.

The Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court recently issued an opinion that significantly impacts the scope of payment bond coverage by changing the application of what is commonly known as the “safe harbor” provision. The decision in Berks Products v. Arch Insurance Co., is already drawing fire from several quarters of the construction industry.