Construction Law

Court Affirms Decision for Subcontractor in Construction Defect Case

By Ryan McCabe

On July 12, a California appellate court upheld summary judgment for a subcontractor in a condo defect case.  The court found that the condo association and general contractor failed to identify the subcontractor?s involvement in any of the alleged construction defects, which included decay, water intrusion, and mold growth. The condo association originally sued the company that owned the condo complex, and later added the general contractor to the suit. The general contractor filed a cross-complaint and joined several subcontractors into the action seeking indemnity. 

The court determined that the complaint did not specifically reference any misconduct on the part of the subcontractor, a drywall supplier and installer, therefore there was no obligation for the subcontractor to indemnify the general contractor. Indemnity is a duty to reimburse any loss, damage or liability incurred by another, and typically stems from a contractual relationship. In this situation, the indemnity clause in the contract between the subcontractor and general contractor provides that the subcontractor will indemnify the contractor against any claim of defect in the drywall or its installation. Because the complaint and cross-complaint failed to implicate the subcontractor, it had no duty to indemnify the contractor.

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Full post as published by The South Carolina Construction Law Blog on September 02, 2010 (boomark / email).