September new trial date for Harmon Hotel construction-defect case

Mark late September as the new starting date for a trial over construction defects at CityCenter’s unfinished Harmon Hotel.

At a Friday hearing, Clark County District Judge Elizabeth Gonzalez said she would begin trial “on or about” Sept. 22. Several start dates have already gone by. But now the case faces a December deadline mandated by Nevada’s rule that trials must start within five years after filing or face dismissal.

Attorneys in the case for CityCenter, operating and half-owned by MGM Resorts International, former general contractor Perini Building Co. and several subcontractors estimate the jury trial would last from nine to 14 months. Although CityCenter has said it settled much smaller claims with Perini covering the problems at the rest of the CityCenter, this did not include all the subcontractors. If the dispute with the subcontractors is not resolved, that could lengthen the trial.

Still to be determined is where the trial would take place. It could Las Vegas or somewhere in Northern Nevada that has seen little publicity about the Harmon. Also at issue is whether a settlement is reached with FM Global, the insurance company that carried the policy on the Harmon.