Implications Of “Repair Act” Decision On Developers

GlobeSt.com (January 23, 2018) A recent California Supreme Court affirmation upholding SB800 as a “virtually exclusive remedy” in certain construction-defect cases gives a clear pathway to developers, whether they follow the legislation or not, Allen Matkins’ Tim Hutter tells GlobeSt.com. On January 18, the Court affirmed an earlier appellate-court decision holding that SB800 (Civil Code sections 895 through 945.5, also known as the “Right to Repair Act”) is the “virtually exclusive remedy” available to a plaintiff in new for-sale-residential construction-defect cases. According to Allen Matkins, the Court’s decision in McMillin Albany, LLC v. Superior Court restores the clarity that many in the development industry thought they had secured when the Right to Repair Act was originally negotiated by stakeholder groups and became law on January 1, 2003. The opinion affirms the 2015 decision from the Fifth Appellate District of the California Court of Appeal.