United States: Real Estate and Construction

Contract damages in construction require more than just a feeling of being wronged—they demand objective proof that losses flowed from the breach and can be quantified with reasonable certainty. Two primary methods, the measured mile and total cost approach, offer different pathways to recovery, but success hinges on building a contemporaneous record from day one that clearly links specific impacts to specific costs.

Florida's Senate Bill 180 introduces sweeping restrictions on local government land use regulations following hurricane disasters, creating immediate opportunities for developers to bypass newly enacted approval processes. The law freezes "more restrictive or burdensome" comprehensive plan amendments and zoning procedures through October 2027, while establishing expedited legal remedies for enforcement. A Miami Beach hotel project demonstrates how developers can leverage these provisions to circumvent discr

Florida's 2026 Legislative Session produced sweeping land use reforms that fundamentally alter the relationship between state preemption and local government authority. From expanding Live Local Act eligibility to religious and public lands, to mandating objective compatibility standards for residential denials, to creating an entirely new administrative pathway for infill housing on contaminated South Florida sites, these laws provide developers with unprecedented tools to navigate—and in many cases