Legal and Regulatory

Pay If Paid Clauses and the Prevention Doctrine
"Pay if paid" clauses shift risk of an owner’s nonpayment from the general contractor to the subcontractor, but savvy subcontractors will negotiate language that allows the general contractor to withhold payment only if the owner’s nonpayment is related to the subcontractor’s performance.
By Scott D. Cessar
July 28, 2019
Topics
Legal and Regulatory
by Scott D. Cessar
Scott Cessar’s practice at Eckert Seamans Cherin & Mellott, LLC covers a broad range of civil litigation with a primary focus on construction law. He has extensive trial and alternative dispute resolution experience representing clients before state and federal courts, arbitration panels and mediators across the country. Scott’s construction law practice encompasses both public and private projects (commercial, heavy/highway, industrial, institutional and residential). Projects include hydroelectric plants, steel mills, bridges and highways, hospitals, office buildings, schools, laboratories, greenhouses, dams, pipelines, gas transmission facilities, water plants, sewer plants, mines, airports, glass furnaces, stadiums, hotels, pipelines, factories and process facilities and environmental remediation sites. Scott has handled all types of construction claims including delay, impact, loss of productivity, differing site condition, defective work, extra cost, architectural and engineering errors and omissions and overcharges, and bid and procurement protests; representing private owners, developers, public agencies, prime contractors, subcontractors, design professionals, equipment manufacturers and suppliers and sureties. Eckert Seamans Cherin & Mellott, LLC is a national law firm with over 375 attorneys located in offices throughout the eastern United States. The firm's clients represent nearly every facet of the economy, including multinational corporations, small businesses, nonprofit institutions, municipalities, government agencies and individuals. Scott D. Cessar can be reached at scessar@eckertseamans.com; 412.566.2581.
Related stories
Legal and Regulatory

Supreme Court's Course Correction on NEPA Already Steering Decisions in Infrastructure Development Cases
By David Ayliffe
How a Colorado court case could set a precedent for minimizing legal infrastructure hurdles.
Legal and Regulatory

Navigating Disruption to Construction Projects Flowing From the America First Trade Policy
By Meagan T. Bachman
Months later, how is Trump's America First Trade Policy affecting the construction industry? Many companies still aren't quite sure.
Legal and Regulatory

Numbers Don't Lie: Accounting Leaders Weigh In on State of 2025 Construction Finance
By David McMillin
But they don’t automatically tell easy truths, either. Leaders from some of the best accounting firms weigh in on how to navigate an environment in which evolving tariffs, rising costs and new tax legislation are creating financial complexities.