By Kimberly A. Blake of Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani, LLP
Construction contractors are subject to regulations of the state in which they seek to work. While some states require contractors to be licensed (involving a process to prove reasonable competency) for certain categories of work, others only require contractors to be registered (recording who is performing the work without any guarantee of expertise/competency). Additionally, while some states have licenses that cover all or most kinds of construction work, other states have distinct licensing categories based on whether the project in question is commercial or residential. Furthermore, some states have specific criteria for what must be included in the contracts entered into with/by a contractor as pertaining to their authorization to perform the contracted work within the state.
See the full chart of Licensing and Contract Disclosure Requirements for each state here. It was first published in the Construction Law Update, Second Quarter 2021.
Kimberly Blake is a partner in Gordon & Rees’ San Diego office and is a member of the firm's Construction, Environmental/Toxic Tort and Tort and Product Liability practice groups. She focuses her practice on defending developers, design professionals, architects, engineers, corporate entities, general contractors, and subcontractors regarding a diverse spectrum of matters involving both public and private works. Ms. Blake has also handled real estate matters, related professional liability claims, defended mold, asbestos, benzene, and other toxic environmental and alleged toxic tort claims, and defended product liability claims. She can be reached at kblake@grsm.com or 619.230.7471.