Bidding on public projects for state or local governmental entities involves a number of issues not necessarily present in the private sector. For example, confidentiality concerns exist when submitting information to a governmental entity. When submitting a bid or proposal, a contractor may be required to provide sensitive information, including but certainly not limited to financial information. Additionally, a contractor may have invested time and money in determining the best manner of presenting a bid or proposal. The contractor generally has an interest in keeping this information private and out of the hands of its competitors. But the Texas Public

All too often, contractors do not have quality recordkeeping procedures. This can cause numerous problems, especially if issues are encountered during construction. Contractors often elect to create files for a specific project, which may contain subfolders for items such as contracts, submittals and correspondence. Unless company policy clearly states which information is to be placed into the project file, it is unlikely that all relevant information will be included. For example, as a project progresses, a project manager may use a work computer. At the close of the project, files created on the work computer may never be transferred to

To paraphrase a valued client, “A contractor without a bond really isn’t a contractor.” Bonds certainly allow for the performance of governmental work and opportunities for private work. A payment bond is intended to ensure payment to subcontractors and suppliers. A performance bond generally guarantees the completion of a contract if a contractor defaults. CARSON FISK To to so, a contractor must deal with a surety. The surety will almost certainly require the contractor to sign some form of indemnity agreement to encourage the surety to issue bonds and protect the surety from losses or expenses. It is entirely possible,

When non-compliant or defective work issues arise on a project, payment is often disrupted. If only partial payments are made to a contractor, some subcontractors may not be fully paid and litigation results. Savvy legal counsel may pursue a misapplication of trust funds claim as a means of recovering unpaid amounts. If one is pursuing the claim or defending against it, a claim for misapplication of trust funds can be a powerful weapon or an aggravating, although serious, nuisance. FISK Under Chapter 162 of the Texas Property Code, payments made under a construction contract are generally considered trust funds. The