Insured losses from catastrophes and severe weather total $54 billion worldwide so far in 2020, with losses from the first half still developing, according to Aon. That prolonged loss development is occurring "as the COVID-19 environment has forced a change in how damage assessments are conducted and the speed by which claims are approved/paid," Aon said.

Employers who want to use temperature screening technology should set it up indoors or in a tented environment if outdoor deployment is necessary, Rich Mellot writes. He advises keeping in mind that people's temperature readings may be affected if they have just done vigorous exercise or have been outside in the heat for a long time before being scanned.

Instead of relying on change orders to serve as a placeholder for future claims, contractors should segregate communications to individual issues, track backup documents and request timely resolution in contract terms, write attorneys Andrew Guess and Brianna Wellman.

Attorney Paul Norris examines a recent case where an arbitration clause was ruled unenforceable because the contract lacked required waivers and was written in less-than-10-point font. "The court further explained that the clause lacked the mutuality of assent, because it was less than 10-point font, and thus, was not easily discernable," he writes.

A greater reliance on remote access, cloud data storage and email has also increased the likelihood of data loss and debilitating cyberattacks, Kelly Melchiondo writes. Contractors and business owners should require data security training for all individuals with access to important data and make sure their cyber insurance coverage properly indemnifies other parties as part of their risk minimization strategies.

The Labor Department recently issued the Revised Final Rule on the Families First Coronavirus Response Act's paid leave provisions, which went into effect last week. Most notably, the revised rule emphasizes that employees aren't eligible for leave unless the employer needs them to work, reaffirms that employees must secure employer consent before taking intermittent FFCRA leave and clarifies the need for employees to supply documentation to employers about FFCRA leave.

A recent case in Tennessee dismissed claims by a subcontractor against a general contractor because the subcontractor was not licensed in the state. Tennessee law limits damages in such cases to "actual documented expenses that can be shown by clear and convincing proof."

ESCO Construction, based in Colorado, is asking for a federal investigation into why the company lost a bid for concrete work at the Kansas City International Airport. The contract was awarded to Ideker, based in St. Joseph, Mo.

The ConsensusDocs Coalition recently published eight newly revised performance and payment bond forms. These comprehensive revisions further ensure that ConsensusDocs is the most up-to-date and best practice performance and payment bonds in the industry. The ConsensusDocs bond forms working group included representatives from owners, prime contractors, subcontractors and the surety industry, comments Bob Majerus, general counsel of Hensel Phelps Construction and chair of the ConsensusDocs Bond Form Working Group. He added, "We worked together collaboratively to produce a new set of bond forms that meet the current needs of the construction and surety industries. These new forms are now my bond forms of choice." Through the AGC Contract Documents Forum, AGC is a founding sponsor and endorser of ConsensusDocs.

ConsensusDocs contracts are endorsed by 40-plus design and construction industry associations representing designers, owners, contractors, subcontractors and sureties, including AGC of America. Learn more.