A Miami-Dade jury is in the process of hearing (and deciding) how much a family should receive in the way of monetary figures, dollars, money – for the devastation that Chinese drywall inflicted upon the place they once called home.  The source article is available here, from the Miami Herald.

According to the article, some of the first known occasions of something being “wrong” with the drywall at issue in the trial transpired back in 2006, when some sheets of drywall were being delivered to a home in the Coconut Grove community.  Questions were raised as to the foul smelling odor the product was seemingly giving off.  Days passed, and finally Knauf Plasterboard Tianjin notified Banner Supply, a Miami company, not to sell the product.  Unfortunately, that notice came too late.

The drywall was installed in the home that the article references, as being located in Coconut Grove.  The attorney for the couple that purchased the home told the jury this week that there was indeed adequate time to stop installing the drywall, and to halt the process.  The bottom line is that the drywall did end up in the home.

This case is significant in that it is the first jury trial in the nation regarding drywall that is allegedly defective, and was sourced from China.   During opening statements, the Miami Herald reported that the attorney for the couple stated, “Banner [the supply company] had the knowledge.  They had the power.  Instead they used it to protect themselves.”  A brief video was then shown to demonstrate broadly, and to give jurors an overview, of how the emissions from the drywall devastated and ravished the family’s home.  The plaintiffs in this case suffered damages that included the refrigerator, air conditioner, wire damages and more.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission has been up to its ears with complaints – over 3,300 thus far – regarding Chinese drywall.  Thousands of cases have been filed.  If you or someone you know believes the home they live in was constructed with Chinese drywall, they ought to ascertain whether it was built with it in fact.  Consulting an attorney is one way to check, as well-versed lawyers such as Richard J. Serpe, in Norfolk Virginia for example,  have devoted hours upon hours of research into the issue specifically.

It can be said that Louisiana has seen its share of issues, upon reflecting on the last decade.  First it was Hurricane Katrina that devastated New Orleans, then the Chinese drywall crisis became apparent, as its cumulative effect has affected thousands of homeowners across the country.  Now with the BP oil spill, the region’s economy, homeowners, and residents are suffering.

The Chinese drywall crisis – while stemming from the Hurricane season of 2004 and 2005 (and primarily causing a drywall shortage from the massive Hurricane Katrina) – has affected homeowners across the country.  Florida has also been a state where much concern has been raised about toxic drywall from China, and recently a Miami-Dade Circuit Judge approved class-action status for a case brought by a couple who purchased their home in 2008.

The first class action lawsuit regarding Chinese drywall is reported by the Miami Herald (click here for source article), to include up to 152 families, from three (3) Homestead neighborhoods.  The class-action status decision.

Class-action status is significant legally, in that plaintiffs (those who suffered harm) can benefit by being considered a “class” or a group rather than having to file a lawsuit for each home affected.  This “class-action” status obviously alleviates administrative burdens on the court system as well.

Homeowners will receive a notice in the mail, pursuant to the rules of the court system, regarding whether they would like to join the suit.

Still other communities exist across the country where neighborhoods may deserve class-action status.  How those situations play out, and how the judges will rule in those scenarios, will be reported on as soon as developments are available.

In a pivotal development,  a Chinese manufacturer has settled its first suit – Knauf Plasterboard Tianjin Co. settled just days ago, on Friday.  Read the source article, from CBS, here.

The settlement was reached with a homebuilder in Atlanta, Beazer Homes USA, inc.  The settlement was reportedly first made known from an email sent by the law firm representing Knauf.  The article from CBS states that more information will be released to the public in coming days.

Knauf is facing numerous lawsuits from homeowners that claim the drywall installed within their home is defective.  Allegedly, the drywall causes corrosion, foul odors, and other issues including potentially health-related symptoms.  But Knauf is not the only company that has faced allegations of dealing in defective drywall.  Other businesses have been scrutinized (and will continue to be so), such as importers, exporters, builders, and so on.  The magnitude of the issue, monetarily speaking, is enormous.  The potential devastation to an already thrashed housing market is a scary thought.

Thechinesedrywalllawyer.com has been covering the multidistrict litigation taking place in New Orleans, as well as developments as they have become available.  One of the primary federal agencies addressing the defective drywall issue is the Consumer Product Safety Commission, which has received over 3,000 complaints to date.

Thus far, plaintiffs have been relatively successful in court. Judge Eldon Fallon ruled that Knauf must pay damages just over $160,000 to one family in Louisiana.  In addition, the same court held that seven Virginia homeowners were entitled to a combined total of over $2.6 million.

According to CBS, the email from Knauf lawyer included the statement, “the settlement with Beazer is part of [Knauf's] effort to get this issue behind them and move forward.”  The settlement shows at least some willingness to correct problems, which can provide at least some hope that other Chinese manufacturers will cooperate in future proceedings.

Winknews.com recently ran an interesting story: Investors breaking into Cape Coral foreclosed homes. The first time you hear of this you may be taken aback. Cape Coral police have their hands full when it comes to dealing with this “Chinese drywall related” crime.

The way the crime works is simple: real estate investors are paying people to break into homes they are interested in buying. The reason for this? To see if it contains Chinese drywall. Obviously, investors do not want to buy “as is” homes that were built with the tainted material. If they do, they will be out a lot of money due to the high cost of repair.

These investors may think they are beating the system, but all they are doing is taking part in a very serious crime. Along the way, they are taking down many people who are foolish enough to trespass for a small payment.

With so many real estate investors in Florida it was only a matter of time until something like this began to happen. The question now is whether or not this problem will spread to other parts of the country.

Believe it or not, a bill meant to help Chinese drywall victims is being backed by the Homebuilders Association of Florida. This has surprised many people, and for good reason – builders are often times seen as those who are somewhat responsible for this problem. Last Thursday, the legislation passed the Insurance, Business and Financial Affairs Policy Committee in the House.

The bill gives homeowners the ability to sign an agreement with a contractor that will work for the developer that installed the tainted drywall, to make repairs. Along with this, it is important to note that the bill does not grant total immunity, but will protect developers from some future legal action. A bad repair job by the contractor, for example, could still lead to a lawsuit.

The nice thing about the proposed bill is that it will bring together homeowners and builders, both of whom are interested in finding a solution to this ever growing problem.

The sponsor of the bill, Rep. Debbie Mayfield, said it best: “Hundreds of homeowners throughout Florida have been forced from their homes due to the effects of Chinese drywall and the intent of the legislation is to get them back in their homes. Neither the state nor federal government has come up with a protocol on how to handle this situation, and we can’t wait around any longer to remedy the situation.”

The state of Florida has been hit hard by Chinese drywall. For this reason, state legislatures are looking at all their options in terms of providing help to homeowners. Lawmakers are in the process of considering all repair options. At this time, there is no “approved and formal” method for getting rid of Chinese drywall.

The government is in the process of attempting to settle on the best remedy. Until then, there is a plan currently in the Florida House that would allow contractors to do whatever they can to help, until the government decides on something more concrete.

That being said, some homeowners are worried about this because there is no way of saying for sure if a particular type of remediation will actually solve the problem.

If you want to read more about this bill, as well as what some Florida homeowners are saying, check out the full story at: WinkNews.com.

By now, you may have heard that FEMA has rejected Florida’s request for Chinese drywall help. As you can imagine, this does not bode well for other states that were hoping to get some sort of relief from the agency.

Why didn’t FEMA step in and help the thousands of Florida homeowners who have been affected by Chinese drywall? Officials said that the state’s request did not meet the federal criteria for a major disaster or emergency. Of course, those living with this problem and dealing with it everyday probably have a different viewpoint.

Even though FEMA turned down the state, they have been directed to contact the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). HUD plans to help Chinese drywall victims as much as possible.

It will be interesting to see what FEMA has to say to the other states that have requested help. Although there is no way of knowing for sure, there is a good chance that the outcome will be identical.

A recent article, published by Wink News, highlights the unique dilemmas and offshoot problems many families are facing, in light of the Chinese drywall issue.  When Chinese drywall is found to exist in a home, the issues that arise sometimes go much deeper than finding a new place to reside (as if that were not a complicated issue enough).  Ordinances and other laws have financial implications.

A Cape Coral family recently learned they would have to gut their home to rid it of toxic Chinese drywall.  After discovering their home contained the problem drywall, they decided to make a financially responsible move: they decided to live in an RV they parked in the driveway of their home.  Not only did they move into a smaller, tighter, less desirable living space – they also performed high intensity labor.  They undertook such tasks as removing ceiling fans, carpet, and electrical outlets.  They removed these components so that later, they could remove the drywall that is at the root of their drywall woes.

While the hard work combined with the transition from a home into an RV is enough of a burden in and of itself, Cape Coral has an ordinance that only allows an RV to stay in such a place for a period of ten days.

The homeowner, as quoted by the source, stated “At the present time, we have a petition with the council to change the ordinance on these RV’s so it will allow people to . . . have somewhere to go.”  According to the source, the family had to move from the home due to respiratory symptoms and corrosion.

Emergency money for homeowners with Chinese drywall is closer than ever before – at least in the state of Florida. Governor Charlie Crist is doing what he can to push FEMA into providing money for those who have been affected by tainted drywall.

Recently, Crist sent a letter to FEMA asking for an evaluation of the damages that have been caused by Chinese drywall. Along with this, the letter also clearly asks for FEMA to provide aid to those in need.

Of course, there are some residents who feel that this letter is not going to do any good. There is a large continent of Chinese drywall residents who only want Crist to declare a state of emergency. Up to this point, he has been reluctant to do so.

For more information on this story, including quotes from residents, visit nbc-2.com.