Erica Loftis Pacheco of Lanak & Hanna successfully defended a general contractor and project owner, a local university, from a subcontractor’s attempt to triple its contract price. Subcontractor filed suit on a one-time fee contract alleging that it had completed the contract three times based on manhours expended. After a multi-day trial, the court found for the general contractor and denied the subcontractor’s request for any additional payment.
Based on the general contractor’s records, Lanak & Hanna was able to prove the contract was completed in phases subject to an overarching construction schedule. In addition, the court found that the general contractor’s master agreement bound the subcontractor to payment solely out of funds the general contractor received from the project owner and to assume the risk of owner delay or failure to pay its contractors. Defeating both a breach of contract and a common counts cause of action, Lanak & Hanna further secured recovery of client’s attorney’s fees and costs accrued throughout the litigation.
