Published by Bryan A. Woods – San Antonio Construction Defects Attorney
The Deceptive Trade Practices Act and Construction Defects
When you purchase a newly constructed home, you are relying on the expertise, honesty, and integrity of the builder. Unfortunately, the residential construction industry is rife with developers who prioritize profit over quality, cutting corners and misrepresenting the standard of their work. When you discover that your new home is plagued by foundation issues, water intrusion, or structural flaws, you may feel overwhelmed and powerless against a large corporate builder. However, Texas law provides a powerful tool for homeowners in these situations. At Bryan A. Woods Attorney at Law, I utilize the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act (DTPA) to hold dishonest builders accountable and recover maximum damages for my clients.
The DTPA was enacted specifically to protect consumers from false, misleading, and deceptive business practices, as well as unconscionable actions and breaches of warranty. In the context of residential construction, it is one of the most effective legal weapons available to a homeowner. Builders who assure buyers that a home was constructed to code, only to deliver a property riddled with hidden defects, have violated the DTPA. As a Board Certified specialist in Consumer and Commercial Law, I have spent decades leveraging this statute to force negligent builders to compensate homeowners for their shoddy workmanship.
Breach of Implied Warranties
One of the strongest applications of the DTPA in construction defect cases involves the breach of implied warranties. Under Texas law, when a builder sells a new home, there is an implied warranty that the home was constructed in a good and workmanlike manner and that it is habitable. These warranties exist regardless of what the builder’s written contract says. Builders often try to force buyers to sign documents waiving these implied warranties in exchange for a limited, builder-friendly express warranty.
While Texas courts have allowed some waivers of the implied warranty of good and workmanlike construction under very specific, narrow conditions, the implied warranty of habitability is much harder for a builder to disclaim. If a construction defect is so severe that it makes the home unsafe or unfit for human habitation — such as a failing foundation, severe toxic mold from water intrusion, or dangerous electrical defects — the builder can be held liable under the DTPA for breaching that implied warranty.
Misrepresentations and Unconscionable Actions
The DTPA also penalizes builders who make specific misrepresentations about their product. If a developer’s marketing materials, sales representatives, or contractual documents claim that the home includes specific high-quality materials or meets certain energy-efficiency standards, and those claims turn out to be false, that is a deceptive trade practice. For example, if a builder claims to have installed a specific grade of moisture barrier but actually used a cheaper, inferior product that led to wood rot, the homeowner has a strong DTPA claim.
Furthermore, the DTPA prohibits “unconscionable actions.” This occurs when a builder takes advantage of a consumer’s lack of knowledge, ability, experience, or capacity to a grossly unfair degree. Most homebuyers are not structural engineers or construction experts; they cannot look at a freshly poured foundation and know that the soil preparation was inadequate. When a builder exploits that lack of technical knowledge to pass off a structurally compromised home as a quality product, they are acting unconscionably under the law.
The Threat of Treble Damages
What makes the DTPA such a powerful tool is the potential for enhanced damages. In a standard breach of contract case, a homeowner is typically only entitled to recover their actual economic damages — the cost to repair the defects. However, if we can prove that the builder committed the deceptive act or breach of warranty “knowingly” or “intentionally,” the DTPA allows the judge or jury to award up to three times the amount of the consumer’s economic damages, plus damages for mental anguish.
This threat of “treble damages” changes the dynamic of a construction defect dispute. When a builder knows they are facing a lawsuit that could cost them triple the repair costs plus the homeowner’s attorney fees, they are far more likely to come to the negotiating table with a serious, realistic settlement offer. My philosophy is to prepare every case for trial; this aggressive posture ensures that the opposing side understands the financial risk of refusing to make my clients whole.
Navigating the Pre-Suit Notice Requirements
You cannot simply file a DTPA lawsuit against a builder without warning. The law requires the consumer to send a highly specific written notice to the builder at least 60 days before filing suit. This notice must detail the specific complaints, the exact amount of economic damages, and the amount of mental anguish damages being claimed. This period gives the builder an opportunity to inspect the property and make a settlement offer.
Drafting this demand letter correctly is critical. If it is too vague, the lawsuit can be abated. If the damages are calculated incorrectly, it can limit your recovery later. This is why you must hire an experienced consumer rights attorney from the very beginning. I handle the entire process, from hiring the forensic experts to quantify the damages, to drafting the statutory demands, to litigating the case through arbitration or trial. If a builder has deceived you, contact my office to discuss how the DTPA can protect your investment.
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Published by Bryan A. Woods – San Antonio Construction Defects Lawyer
Roof Defects in New Residential Construction
A new home should provide shelter and security, and the roof is the primary defense against the harsh Texas weather. When you purchase a newly built house, you expect the roof to remain leak-free for decades. Unfortunately, roof defects are among the most common complaints in new residential construction. When a builder hires inexperienced subcontractors or rushes the installation to meet a deadline, the resulting roof failures can cause extensive interior damage. At Bryan A. Woods Attorney at Law, I help homeowners hold negligent builders accountable for defective roofing systems and the costly water damage they cause.
Roof defects are rarely the result of bad shingles; they are almost always the result of bad workmanship. The roofing system relies on a precise sequence of underlayment, flashing, and overlapping materials to shed water effectively. When a single step in that sequence is skipped or performed incorrectly, the entire system is compromised. The water that leaks through a defective roof does not just stain your ceiling; it saturates your insulation, ruins your drywall, and creates an environment where toxic mold can thrive.
The Critical Role of Flashing
The vast majority of roof leaks in new construction occur at the flashing points. Flashing is the metal material installed at intersections and penetrations on the roof — such as where the roof meets a vertical wall, in the valleys where two roof slopes join, and around chimneys, plumbing vents, and skylights. These areas are highly vulnerable to water intrusion, and installing the flashing correctly requires time, skill, and attention to detail.
When builders push subcontractors to work faster, flashing is often installed sloppily or omitted entirely. We frequently see cases where “step flashing” along sidewalls is nailed improperly, allowing water to run behind the exterior siding and down into the wall framing. We also see “kick-out flashing” omitted at the bottom of roof-to-wall intersections, which directs heavy runoff straight into the stucco or brick veneer. These defects guarantee that the home will suffer severe water intrusion; it is only a matter of time.
Inadequate Ventilation and Attic Moisture
A roof defect does not always manifest as a visible drip during a rainstorm. Improper attic ventilation is a serious construction defect that can destroy a roof from the inside out. A properly designed roof system must include adequate intake vents (usually at the soffits) and exhaust vents (at the ridge) to allow air to circulate through the attic. This circulation prevents heat and moisture from building up in the attic space.
When a builder fails to install sufficient ventilation, the attic becomes a trap for humidity. In the winter, warm, moist air from the living space rises into the cold attic and condenses on the underside of the roof decking. This constant condensation causes the wood decking to rot and promotes widespread mold growth across the attic framing. In the summer, inadequate ventilation causes attic temperatures to soar, baking the asphalt shingles from beneath and drastically reducing the lifespan of the roof. Builders who fail to calculate and install the correct ventilation ratios must be held liable for the resulting damage.
Wind Damage and Improper Fastening
Texas experiences severe weather — high winds, hail, and heavy rain. While no roof is entirely immune to a major storm, a properly installed roof should easily withstand typical seasonal weather. When a relatively minor storm causes shingles to blow off a new home, it is usually a sign of improper fastening.
Shingle manufacturers provide strict instructions on how their products must be installed — specifying the exact number of nails per shingle and the precise placement of those nails. When roofers work too quickly, they often drive nails too high on the shingle (missing the reinforced nailing strip) or overdrive the nails through the matting. These installation errors void the manufacturer’s warranty and leave the roof highly susceptible to wind uplift. If your new roof is shedding shingles in moderate winds, the builder’s negligence is likely to blame.
Forcing the Builder to Make It Right
When homeowners report a roof leak, builders typically send a worker out with a tube of roofing cement to patch the immediate area. This “band-aid” approach rarely solves the underlying defect. If the flashing was installed incorrectly across the entire roof, patching one spot only means the water will find a new entry point during the next storm. You need a permanent fix, which often requires removing the surrounding roofing materials and rebuilding the intersection correctly.
I do not let builders get away with superficial repairs. When I take a roof defect case, I work with independent roofing consultants who thoroughly inspect the entire system to identify every installation error. We document the code violations, the deviations from manufacturer specifications, and the full extent of the interior water damage. If your new home has a defective roof, do not settle for endless patches and empty promises. Contact my office today to discuss how we can force the builder to provide the quality roof you paid for.
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Published by Bryan A. Woods – San Antonio Construction Defects Attorneys
HVAC and Plumbing Defects in New Homes
When you move into a newly constructed home, you expect the essential systems to function flawlessly. The air conditioning should keep you cool during the brutal Texas summers, and the plumbing should deliver clean water without leaking into your walls. Unfortunately, behind the fresh paint and new fixtures, many new homes hide severe mechanical defects. When builders use cheap materials or hire unqualified subcontractors to install HVAC and plumbing systems, the homeowner is left dealing with constant breakdowns, massive utility bills, and catastrophic water damage. At Bryan A. Woods Attorney at Law, I aggressively pursue builders who install defective mechanical systems, forcing them to cover the cost of proper repairs.
HVAC and plumbing are the lifeblood of a modern home. They are also highly complex systems that require precise engineering and skilled installation. When a developer prioritizes speed and cost-cutting over quality control, these systems are often the first to suffer. Because the ductwork and pipes are hidden behind drywall and under concrete, homeowners usually do not realize they have a problem until a pipe bursts or the AC unit completely fails.
The Consequences of Improper HVAC Sizing
One of the most common HVAC defects in new construction is improper sizing. A builder must calculate the specific heating and cooling loads for a home based on its square footage, ceiling height, window placement, and insulation values. Instead of doing the math, many builders simply guess, installing units that are either too large or too small for the house.
An undersized AC unit will run constantly, struggling to cool the home while driving your electricity bill through the roof. An oversized unit is just as problematic; it cools the house too quickly and shuts off before it has a chance to dehumidify the air. This leads to a clammy, uncomfortable living environment and creates the perfect conditions for mold to grow inside the ductwork and on the walls. Correcting an improperly sized system usually requires ripping out the brand-new equipment and replacing it entirely — an expense the builder should bear, not the homeowner.
Defective Ductwork and Poor Airflow
Even if the HVAC unit itself is sized correctly, the system will fail if the ductwork is installed poorly. Flexible ductwork is notorious for installation errors. If the ducts are pinched, kinked, or not properly supported in the attic, the airflow is severely restricted. This causes certain rooms in the house to be freezing cold while others remain uncomfortably hot.
Furthermore, if the duct joints are not sealed with mastic or proper foil tape, the system will blow expensive, conditioned air directly into the attic instead of the living space. This is not just an efficiency issue; blowing cold air into a hot, humid attic can cause severe condensation problems, leading to wood rot and ruined insulation. Builders who fail to inspect and test the ductwork before closing up the ceilings are acting negligently and must be held accountable.
Catastrophic Plumbing Failures
Plumbing defects are arguably the most destructive issues a homeowner can face. A slow leak behind a wall can rot the framing and spawn toxic mold for months before it is discovered. A sudden pipe burst can flood a home in minutes, destroying flooring, drywall, and personal belongings.
Many plumbing defects in new homes stem from the use of substandard materials or improper installation techniques. For example, if a plumber fails to properly glue PVC joints or uses the wrong type of fittings for PEX piping, those connections will eventually fail under pressure. We also see frequent issues with improperly sloped sewer lines, which cause constant backups and require expensive foundation trenching to repair.
Holding the Builder Responsible
When an HVAC or plumbing system fails in a new home, the builder will often try to deflect blame onto the manufacturer of the equipment or claim that the homeowner failed to change the air filters. They may offer a minor repair, like adding a bit of refrigerant to a leaking AC coil, while ignoring the systemic installation flaws that caused the problem in the first place.
I do not accept these excuses. My firm works with licensed mechanical engineers and master plumbers to investigate the entire system. We identify the code violations, the deviations from manufacturer specifications, and the exact cost to rip out the defective work and install it correctly. If you are dealing with endless AC breakdowns, uneven cooling, or unexplained plumbing leaks in your new home, you need an experienced construction defect attorney on your side. Contact my office today to discuss your case and learn how we can help you recover your damages.
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Published by Bryan A. Woods – San Antonio Construction Defects Lawyers
Understanding Arbitration Clauses in Builder Contracts
When you sit down to sign the massive stack of paperwork required to purchase a new home, the builder’s sales representative usually rushes you through the process. They point to where you need to sign and initial, assuring you that it is all “standard boilerplate.” What they do not highlight is the binding arbitration clause buried deep within that contract. This single paragraph strips you of your constitutional right to take the builder to court if they construct a defective home. At Bryan A. Woods Attorney at Law, I have spent decades navigating the complex world of construction arbitration, ensuring that my clients receive fair compensation despite the builders’ attempts to stack the deck against them.
Arbitration is a private dispute resolution process where a third-party arbitrator — not a judge or a jury — decides the outcome of your case. Builders love arbitration because it is private, meaning their shoddy workmanship is kept out of the public record. They also prefer it because they believe arbitrators are less likely to award large damages or punitive awards than a sympathetic jury of homeowners would be. When you discover foundation failure, water intrusion, or structural defects in your new home, that arbitration clause becomes a significant hurdle in your fight for justice.
How Builders Manipulate the Arbitration Process
The arbitration clauses written by large corporate builders are not designed to be fair; they are designed to limit the builder’s liability. Many of these contracts dictate which arbitration firm must be used to handle the dispute. This creates an inherent conflict of interest. The arbitration firm knows that the builder constructs hundreds of homes a year and represents a steady stream of future business. The homeowner, on the other hand, is a one-time participant. While arbitrators are supposed to be neutral, the financial reality of the situation often leads to decisions that favor the builder.
Furthermore, these clauses often attempt to limit the types of damages a homeowner can recover. They may explicitly state that the homeowner waives their right to seek punitive damages, mental anguish damages, or even attorney’s fees. They may also impose strict, unreasonably short deadlines for filing a claim, hoping the homeowner will miss the window and forfeit their rights entirely.
The Importance of the Deceptive Trade Practices Act
Despite the builder’s attempts to limit your rights through the contract, Texas law still provides powerful protections. The Deceptive Trade Practices Act (DTPA) is a critical tool in arbitration. Even if the contract attempts to waive certain warranties or limit damages, a builder cannot contract away their liability for deceptive, false, or unconscionable acts.
If we can prove that the builder knowingly misrepresented the quality of the home or intentionally concealed known defects, we can pursue enhanced damages under the DTPA, regardless of the standard limitations in the arbitration clause. Bringing a strong DTPA claim into the arbitration process forces the builder and the arbitrator to take the case seriously, significantly increasing the leverage we have during settlement negotiations.
Preparing for Arbitration Like a Trial
Many homeowners make the mistake of thinking arbitration is a casual, informal process where they can simply tell their story and get a fair result. This is a dangerous misconception. Arbitration is a highly structured legal proceeding with complex rules of evidence and procedure. The builder will show up with a team of corporate defense lawyers and highly paid expert witnesses ready to tear your claims apart.
To win in arbitration, you must be prepared to fight fire with fire. My philosophy is to prepare every arbitration case exactly as if we were going to a jury trial. We hire the best independent structural engineers, moisture consultants, and cost estimators to build an unassailable evidentiary record. We conduct thorough discovery, forcing the builder to hand over internal emails, inspection reports, and subcontractor agreements that often reveal a pattern of negligence.
You Need an Experienced Advocate
Navigating a construction defect arbitration requires an attorney who understands both the legal nuances of the process and the technical realities of residential construction. You cannot afford to hire a general practice lawyer who has never cross-examined a geotechnical engineer or dismantled a builder’s cost estimate.
I specialize in construction law, and I know the tactics builders use to avoid responsibility. I know how to select the right arbitrator, how to challenge unfair contract provisions, and how to present complex technical evidence in a way that demands a fair award. If your builder is hiding behind an arbitration clause while your home falls apart, contact my office. We will aggressively pursue your case and fight for the compensation you need to repair your home.
Published by Bryan A. Woods – San Antonio Construction Defects Attorney
Soil Movement and Shifting Foundations in Texas
Texas is notorious for its challenging soil conditions. The expansive clay that lies beneath much of San Antonio and the surrounding areas behaves like a sponge — swelling massively when it absorbs water and shrinking dramatically during dry spells. This constant heaving and subsiding exerts tremendous pressure on anything built above it. When developers and builders fail to properly engineer a home to withstand this inevitable soil movement, the results are catastrophic. At Bryan A. Woods Attorney at Law, I represent homeowners whose properties have been devastated by shifting foundations, forcing negligent builders to pay for the structural damage they caused.
A shifting foundation is not a natural disaster; it is a predictable event that competent builders know how to prevent. Before a single yard of concrete is poured, the builder is required to obtain a geotechnical soil report. This report details the exact composition of the soil and provides specific engineering recommendations for the foundation design. When a builder ignores these recommendations to save money, they are making a conscious decision to put your home at risk.
The Signs of a Shifting Foundation
The damage caused by soil movement rarely happens overnight. It is a slow, grinding process that tears the house apart over months or years. Homeowners often notice the cosmetic symptoms long before they realize the structural severity of the problem. One of the first signs is usually interior doors that suddenly stick in their frames or swing open on their own, indicating that the doorframe is no longer square.
As the movement continues, you will see diagonal cracks spreading from the corners of windows and doors across the drywall. Exterior brickwork will develop stair-step cracks through the mortar joints. Inside, the floors may become noticeably uneven, and you might see gaps opening up between the baseboards and the flooring. These are not signs of a house “settling in” as builders often claim; they are the distress signals of a foundation that is failing under the stress of expansive soil.
How Builders Cut Corners on Soil Preparation
Properly preparing a site with highly expansive soil is expensive and time-consuming. It often requires excavating the active clay and replacing it with engineered fill dirt, or installing deep concrete piers that anchor the foundation to stable bedrock far below the active soil zone. It also requires careful grading to ensure that rainwater drains quickly away from the foundation, preventing the soil from becoming supersaturated.
To maximize their profits, negligent developers routinely skip these vital steps. They scrape the lot, throw down a minimal amount of fill dirt, and pour a standard slab-on-grade foundation that has no chance of surviving the soil’s movement. Furthermore, they often fail to install proper drainage systems, allowing water to pool around the foundation and exacerbate the swelling of the clay. When the foundation inevitably cracks and shifts, the builder has usually moved on to the next subdivision, leaving the homeowner holding the bag.
The Builder’s Favorite Excuse: “Homeowner Maintenance”
When you confront a builder about a cracked foundation, their standard defense is to blame you. They will claim that you failed to maintain a consistent moisture level around the perimeter of the house, either by over-watering your lawn or failing to use soaker hoses during a drought. While proper yard maintenance is important, it cannot compensate for a fundamentally defective foundation design.
If a foundation was engineered and poured correctly according to the geotechnical data, it should be able to withstand normal seasonal variations in soil moisture without cracking your drywall or shifting your framing. Blaming the homeowner is simply a tactic to avoid honoring the structural warranty and paying for the massive cost of foundation repair.
Building a Case Against the Developer
You cannot fight a large corporate builder armed only with photos of cracked drywall. You need hard, scientific evidence proving that the builder failed to follow the engineering specifications. My firm works with top geotechnical and structural engineers who will take core samples of the soil around your home, measure the exact elevation changes in your slab, and compare the actual construction against the original blueprints.
We use this data to prove that the builder’s negligence — not your watering habits — caused the foundation failure. We aggressively pursue these cases under the Deceptive Trade Practices Act and breach of warranty claims, seeking the funds necessary to install proper foundation supports and repair the extensive cosmetic damage to the home. If your new house is shifting and cracking, contact my office immediately to protect your investment.
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Published by Bryan A. Woods – San Antonio Construction Defects Lawyer
Real Estate Fraud and Non-Disclosing Sellers
Buying a home is a massive financial commitment built on trust. You trust that the seller is providing an honest account of the property’s condition, and you trust that the real estate agents involved are acting ethically. Unfortunately, the real estate market is heavily incentivized to close deals quickly, and that pressure often leads to deceit. When sellers intentionally hide major structural problems, water damage, or foundation issues to make a sale, the buyer is left with a compromised home and a devastating repair bill. At Bryan A. Woods Attorney at Law, I aggressively pursue non-disclosing sellers and unscrupulous real estate agents to recover the damages my clients suffer due to real estate fraud.
Under Texas law, sellers of residential property are required to provide a Seller’s Disclosure Notice. This document must detail all known defects, malfunctions, and past repairs to the property. It is not meant to be a guess; it is a legally binding statement of facts known to the seller at the time of the sale. When a seller lies on this form, checks “no” when they should have checked “yes,” or intentionally conceals a known problem, they have committed fraud.
The Most Commonly Concealed Defects
Sellers rarely lie about minor, inexpensive issues. The fraud almost always centers on catastrophic, high-cost defects that would cause a buyer to walk away from the deal or demand a massive price reduction. Foundation problems are at the top of the list. A seller might hire a contractor to patch the drywall cracks and paint over the evidence of a shifting foundation, checking “no” on the disclosure form regarding previous foundation repairs or known soil movement.
Water intrusion and roof leaks are also frequently concealed. Sellers will replace stained ceiling tiles or use heavy bleach to temporarily remove the smell of mold in the walls, hoping the buyer’s inspector will not notice the underlying moisture problem. We also see frequent non-disclosure regarding severe plumbing issues, such as failing cast-iron sewer lines under the slab, or electrical systems that have been illegally and dangerously modified without permits.
The Role of Inept or Complicit Inspectors
Homebuyers rely on independent inspectors to uncover the issues the seller might be hiding. However, not all inspectors are thorough, and some are more interested in maintaining a good relationship with the real estate agents who refer them than in protecting the buyer. An inept inspector might fail to enter the crawlspace, skip testing the HVAC system properly, or completely miss obvious signs of water damage.
In some cases, the failure is not just ineptitude; it borders on complicity. If a real estate agent knows about a defect but encourages the seller not to disclose it, or steers the buyer toward an inspector known for being “easy” on properties, that agent can also be held liable for deceptive trade practices. As an experienced consumer rights attorney, I investigate every party involved in the transaction to determine who knew about the defect and who failed in their duty to the buyer.
Proving the Seller Knew
The hardest part of a non-disclosure case is proving that the seller actually knew about the defect before the sale. A seller will always claim ignorance, stating that the foundation must have shifted or the pipe must have broken the day after closing. To win these cases, we must build a paper trail that proves their prior knowledge.
This often involves subpoenaing records from local repair companies to see if the seller ever requested an estimate for the damage they claim they didn’t know about. We interview neighbors who may have seen the seller dealing with the issue. We also use forensic experts who can examine the defect and definitively state that the damage took years to accumulate and could not possibly have occurred post-sale. Once we establish that the seller knew and concealed the truth, we have a strong case for fraud.
Recovering Your Damages
If you discover that the seller lied on the disclosure notice, you have powerful legal remedies. Under the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act (DTPA) and statutory fraud laws, you can sue the seller to recover the cost of repairing the hidden defects. In cases where the deception was intentional and malicious, you may also be entitled to punitive damages and attorney’s fees.
You do not have to absorb the financial ruin caused by a dishonest seller. My firm has collected millions of dollars for clients who were victimized by real estate fraud, non-disclosing sellers, and unscrupulous agents. We prepare every case to go to trial, ensuring the opposing side knows we will not back down until our clients are made whole. Contact my office today to discuss your case and learn how we can help you fight back.
Published by Bryan A. Woods – San Antonio Construction Defects Attorney
Hiring the Right Construction Defect Attorney in Texas
When you discover that your new home is plagued by severe construction defects, your first instinct is to find a lawyer to hold the builder accountable. However, construction law is a highly specialized, intensely technical field. Hiring a general practice attorney who handles divorces one day and traffic tickets the next is a recipe for disaster when going up against a massive corporate homebuilder. You need an advocate who understands the intricacies of structural engineering, soil mechanics, and the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act. At Bryan A. Woods Attorney at Law, I am Board Certified in Consumer and Commercial Law, and I have dedicated my career to fighting for homeowners victimized by shoddy construction.
The builders you are fighting have deep pockets and teams of aggressive defense lawyers whose sole job is to minimize the company’s liability. They know every loophole in the warranty contract and every tactic to delay the process and drain your resources. To beat them, you need an attorney who has faced them before, who knows their strategies, and who has a proven track record of securing multi-million dollar settlements and verdicts for homeowners.
The Importance of Board Certification
In Texas, any licensed attorney can claim to handle construction defect cases, but very few have earned the distinction of being Board Certified by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. Board Certification is a mark of excellence and a rigorous vetting process. It means the attorney has demonstrated extensive experience in their specific area of law, has been evaluated by their peers and judges, and has passed a comprehensive examination in that specialty.
My Board Certification in Consumer and Commercial Law means that I have a deep, specialized understanding of the statutes that protect homeowners, particularly the Deceptive Trade Practices Act (DTPA). I know how to leverage these laws to seek treble damages and attorney’s fees, forcing builders to take your claims seriously. When a builder’s defense team sees a Board Certified specialist on the other side of the table, they know they cannot rely on intimidation or procedural tricks to win the case.
Direct Representation, Not a Legal Mill
Many large law firms operate like assembly lines. The senior partner’s name is on the door, but once you sign the retainer, your case is immediately handed off to a junior associate or a paralegal who is juggling a hundred other files. You rarely speak to the attorney you thought you hired, and your case languishes in a bureaucratic maze.
That is not how I operate. When you hire me, I do your legal work. I do not pass your case to a lesser experienced attorney. I personally review the engineering reports, depose the builder’s experts, and negotiate the settlements. My assistant, Paula Oliver, has been with me for over 35 years; together, we ensure that every client receives personalized, responsive service. We return phone calls and emails within 24 hours, and we provide you with copies of every document related to your dispute so you are never left in the dark.
Building a Case with the Right Experts
A construction defect case is only as strong as the expert testimony supporting it. You cannot win a foundation failure case without a highly credentialed geotechnical engineer, and you cannot win a water intrusion case without a specialized building envelope consultant. Over my 40 years of practice, I have built a network of the most respected forensic construction experts in Texas.
I know which experts carry weight with arbitrators and juries, and I know how to work with them to build an unassailable evidentiary record. We do not just claim the builder made a mistake; we provide the scientific data proving exactly how they deviated from the building code and the manufacturer’s specifications, and exactly how much it will cost to fix it.
Prepared for Trial, Positioned for Settlement
My philosophy is simple: aggressively pursue the case with an eye toward obtaining a good resolution. The best way to secure a favorable settlement is to prepare the case as if it is definitely going to trial or arbitration. When the builder sees that we have the evidence, the experts, and the legal expertise to win in court, they are far more likely to make a realistic, fair settlement offer.
If they refuse to be reasonable, we are fully prepared to try the case. I have collected millions of dollars for clients dealing with foundation defects, water issues, and non-disclosing sellers. If you are facing a nightmare scenario with your home, you need the right attorney in your corner. Contact my office today to schedule a consultation and take the first step toward making your home whole again.
