Just over a year ago, I authored a post on the Arizona Court of Appeals decision in Hatch Development, LLC, et al. v. Sol’s Construction Co., Inc., 240 Ariz. 171 (App. 2016), which addressed the concept of common law indemnification. Just recently, however, the decision in Hatch Development was abrogated by the Arizona Supreme Court’s opinion in KnightBrook Ins. Co., v. Payless Car Rental System, Inc., 243 Ariz. 422 (2018).
The Abrogated Hatch Development Decision
In Hatch Development, homeowners sought indemnification from their contractor for damages suffered by a neighbor due to a defectively installed sewer system. The court ultimately ruled in the homeowners’ favor, holding that a common law “duty to indemnify may arise in at least two alternative circumstances: First, when the party seeking indemnity has ‘extinguished an obligation owed by the party from whom it seeks indemnification,’ or second, when the indemnity defendant is ‘at fault.’” The court noted that the first circumstance was grounded in Restatement (First) of Restitution § 76. Conversely, the second circumstance, on which the Court’s decision turned, was predicated on Restatement (First) of Restitution § 78(b)(ii), which provides, in pertinent part, that a party is entitled to indemnification where: (1) he or she makes a payment on an obligation; (2) the obligation arises because of the fault of the indemnity defendant; and (3) the payment is made with the justifiable belief that the obligation was owed.
The American Institute of Architect’s (“AIA”) Contract Documents are among the most widely used form agreements in construction. For purposes of keeping up with critical court decisions and industry trends, the AIA reviews and amends its core documents every ten years. 2017 marked a decade since the last updates, and like clockwork the AIA has released revised versions of its documents over the course of this year. Several months ago, the AIA released new versions of 14 documents, including its flagship agreements for the design-bid-build delivery model. And just recently, the AIA has released 20 additional new documents relating primarily to the scope of architects’ services.
This post is the first installment of new a monthly series highlighting notable awarded bids and contracts for Arizona public construction projects. I know that it is helpful for my practice to keep track of new projects around the state. So, without any further adieu, here is a list of 
Unmanned aircraft systems (“UAS”), which are commonly referred to as drones, are becoming increasingly less expensive and easier to operate. As a result, these aircraft are being used more frequently for both recreational and business purposes. The construction industry is at the forefront of commercial drone use. In fact, just last week, Fortune published an article entitled, 
I will preface this post by saying that I am neither an accountant nor a tax attorney. If you have specific questions or concerns about Arizona’s new transaction privilege tax laws, please talk to your accountant.