Baton Rouge Business And Construction Law Blog

Construction projects in Baton Rouge are often overseen by a general contractor. However, because the nature of these projects are so complex, general contractors often form agreements with subcontractors who will perform specific tasks. The subcontractor reports to the general contractor while the general contractor will still be ultimately responsible for seeing that the project is completed on time and in the manner agreed upon.

Subcontracting can be useful if a project involves tasks that are not within the primary abilities of the general contractor. Subcontracting can save money and mitigate any risks associated with the construction project. In addition, when basic but necessary tasks are undertaken by subcontractors, the general contractor has the time and resources to focus on other lucrative projects. And, subcontracting is often cheaper than hiring employees, as employers must not only pay an employee's wages, but also insurance benefits and Social Security taxes.

In a perfect world, commercial construction projects would be completed exactly how the parties to the project envision them. However, when project owners, contractors and subcontractors in Louisiana combine efforts in a commercial construction project, things do not always run as smoothly as they might hope. There are a variety of construction defects that could arise in the course of completing a construction project.

One type of defect is a design deficiency. For example, an architect or engineer may design a building that does not meet state codes.

Deciding on a business structure is one of the major components of business formation. Some individuals in Louisiana may be interested in incorporation. Therefore, it is important to understand some of the pros and cons of incorporating a business.

One major advantage of incorporation is that the owners of the corporation are not personally liable for any of the activities or debts of the business. This is because, for legal purposes, the corporation is a separate entity. However, certain formalities must be followed for owners of a corporation to retain this limited liability.

Construction projects in Louisiana are exciting, but they can also be complex. This is due in part to the fact that the project owner, builder and other parties will enter into various types of contracts with one another that will govern how the project will be completed and paid for. In general, there are four types of construction contracts that may play a part in any given contract.

First there is the lump sum contract, also called a fixed price contract. As the name implies, there is one total price in this contract that covers all activities related to the project. Incentives and penalties can be included in this type of contract. For example, there can be benefits for finishing the project early or penalties for finishing the project late.