Are you involved in a solar panel installation dispute in San Diego and need help finding a timely and cost-effective solution?  The Watkins Firm has decades of experience helping San Diego homeowners, commercial interests, and businesses to resolve solar related disputes and lawsuits.  Our unique approach to litigation ensures that your goals and objectives are well established, while seeking an effective settlement or resolution quickly and efficiently.  If you are a homeowner concerned about the deceptive promises made by the sales person or damage to your home or roof during installation we invite you to contact us for a free consultation at 858-535-1511.

If you are a solar provider or contractor who is involved in a solar panel installation dispute or other contractual issue or lawsuit we are prepared to aggressively represent and protect your interests.  Solar power continues to grow throughout San Diego and the number of solar power related disputes and lawsuits has spiked significantly over the past few years.  More than half of the systems installed in the area are leased, and many homeowners are either surprised or feel mislead when it comes time to sell their home, only to learn that the new buyer must reaffirm the solar lease.  Failure to convert the lease to the new buyer can trigger an immediate debt of more than $20,000 which must come from the proceeds of the sale of the home.

Most of these disputes and lawsuits are resolved by our attorneys through effective leveraged negotiations.  It is important to understand and quantify the financial damages in order to increase the strength of your negotiating position.  Opposing counsel know our strong reputation and track record of success.  They also know that we are willing to take our client’s case through mediation and arbitration and all the way to full trial when necessary.  This knowledge adds pressure to resolve the case more expediently and cost-effectively.

Pro-Tip: “we want to get the facts down and we want the evidence they have in chronological order, because that’s the best way to communicate to the other party to a third party, to anyone is in chronological order. That’s how we think. Then I want to help our clients analyze the damages. Whether you are feeling like they owe you something, they’re not complying with the agreement or vice versa. So I want to want something more from you as we analyze the damages, we need to analyze what it’s going to cost to fight. We provide insight and give good advice. Sometimes we’ll even advise our clients how we would think about it and then let them go talk to whoever they’re dealing with on their own armed with our knowledge and our negotiation technique.

Knowing the facts, the damages, the law of the damages is key, because that gives your lawyer the ability to predict what would happen if you went to trial tomorrow and you won, what would you win? That’s it, that’s the number. Because in civil court, we’re only looking at dollar amounts and getting to a resolution and understanding human nature. That’s another thing, right? We cannot just go in there, and here’s the saddest part, and say, here’s the right number. Here’s what I’ll settle for. I’m done talking if that doesn’t work. It should.  We believe we’re all intelligent people. And if we all are intelligent people, we should be able to look at the facts. If we agree on the facts, apply law and come up with the exact same number. Like it’s an accounting problem, but it doesn’t work that way.

The outcome is we either have a real simple resolution and the parties go their own ways or we have a complex resolution or they agree on some kind of compensation and they agree on what to do going forward. Because they’ve been through a lot. And so you just can’t say it’s over because you did or didn’t do something a few years ago, or ‘those people are gone,’ because there’s all these other entitlements and agreements and considerations you have to think about when moving forward.  There’s usually a settlement agreement at the end of a dispute between two parties in a dispute who had one contract that covered the services to be provided.”

If you are involved in a solar panel installation dispute in San Diego we invite you to review our podcast Episode 11 – Resolving Business Disputes as well as the strong recommendations of our clients and contact the Watkins Firm or call 858-535-1511 for a complimentary consultation today.