November2017

CONSTRUCTION DEFECTS... from page 35.

developer and a unit owner controlled condominium association. 2 It is not realistic to suggest that a develop- er would initiate an action against itself, or its contractors and design professionals, prior to transitioning control to the unit owners. Though, in certain circumstances, this is precisely what Palisades requires to preserve the association’s claims against the developer’s contractors and design professionals. Oddly, Palisades also flies in the face of decisions by the "...in such circumstances, the developer is likely a single purpose entity with little to no assets." New Jersey Appellate Division, where the courts refused to let the determina- tion of statutes of repose and limitation turn on fact-sensitive determinations and various analytic approaches to construction stages. 3 Yet, Palisades does just that by charging the unit owner controlled association with the knowledge of the developer and the subsequent task of determining when, if at all, the developer knew of vari- ous construction defects to preserve its claims. Thus, Palisades ushers in uncertainty with respect to the accrual of the six-year statute of limitations. Many reading this may say, “So what, the developer is responsible and will still have to pay for the con- struction defects.” While it is true that the condominium association would

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