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    <copyright>Copyright © 2026. National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.</copyright>
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    <managingEditor>tris-trb@nas.edu (Bill McLeod)</managingEditor>
    <webMaster>tris-trb@nas.edu (Bill McLeod)</webMaster>
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      <title>Legal Problems Arising out of Highway Programs. Topic 26-02. Analysis of Arbitration and Holdings in Construction Disputes</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1889476</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Arbitration can be a useful tool to save time and money in resolving disputes concerning the construction of transportation projects, but the process can be opaque and risky since the results are rarely made public. State departments of transportation (DOTs) would benefit from a database of the various dispute resolution processes being implemented, and the outcomes of those processes that could be used to spot trends in the processes and the results. The research team will ask state DOTs to share what processes they use to resolve construction disputes and the results from those processes, while working closely with the states to protect confidential and privileged information. Many of the available court records and reports may have sections redacted, but even heavily redacted information may be useful to help spot trends in processes and results since very little data currently exists. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this research is to produce a legal research digest that includes the following:
1.    What state statutes or regulations are in place governing resolution of disputes?
2.    What processes are DOTs using for resolution of construction disputes (e.g., contracting officer decisions, executive directors or transportation commission decisions, mediation, dispute review boards (binding) or panels (non-binding), arbitration (binding, dispute size limits, etc.), and litigation)?
3.    What rules are used for the different processes (e.g., timing, makeup, and administration of panels, enforcement of contract clauses) and how do the rules affect the outcome of disputes?
4.    Analysis of binding dispute process decisions to determine whether it’s a useful tool to save time and money for construction disputes. Identify: (1) contract provisions that arbitrators are typically asked to enforce; (2) fact patterns and other issues that cause arbitrators to deviate from settled law and contract terms; (3) levels of proof required to prove damages; (4) percentage of holdings that materially deviate from settled law; and (5) differences in the levels of discovery conducted between the arbitration hearings and similar court hearings. 
 
]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 02 Nov 2021 15:06:44 GMT</pubDate>
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      <title>Legal Problems Arising out of Highway Programs. Topic 23-05. Update of Selected Studies in Transportation Law: Volume Eight, Section 3: Indian Transportation Law</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1889490</link>
      <description><![CDATA[This Digest examines and updates legal issues arising out of federal, state, and local transportation agencies’ relations with Indian tribes. Government-to-government relations with Indian tribes touch a gamut of legal issues: contracting with tribes, Tribal Employment Rights Ordinances (TERO), funding issues,  legal issues arising out of rights-of-way through Indian reservations, regional planning issues, compliance with state environmental laws bumping up against Indian sovereign immunity, tort liability issues, etc. The federal government has a relationship with Indian tribes based upon unique trust obligations  derived from treaties (which are federal law) and the status of tribes as domestic dependent nations. States and local governments do not have the same relationship and yet interact with tribal governments in a number of ways that can involve legal issues. The authority conferred upon  state and local jurisdictions in Indian country, to the extent it exists, is patchwork  and varies depending upon the jurisdiction and unique factual situation. In some cases, there are huge gaps in the law relative to a state or local transportation agency’s ability to conduct business with a tribe. Moreover, there is an overlay of federal law that may affect the rights and obligations of state and local agencies.   Most of the case law examined in the original document published in 2007 continues to be good law today; where this is not the case the document has been updated    Since the original version of this Section, federal regulations concerning grants of right-of-way over Indian lands have changed significantly.  This section also contains new guidance concerning land acquisition, project development, construction, maintenance, and government-to government agreements related to Indian Transportation law. Sections on reservation boundary disputes, defining Indian country, and land ownership in Indian country have been added and the portions of the document addressing jurisdictional issues have been revised significantly.   This digest will be useful to transportation lawyers, engineers, and planners who who work on reservations and Indian country more broadly. ]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 02 Nov 2021 14:42:28 GMT</pubDate>
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