J. Norman Stark | Legally Speaking | March 31, 2016
Construction defect and legal liability due to defective construction documents – the plans and specifications, has been the subject of many highly contested claims. Who is to bear the brunt and loss – the Owner, Architect, Engineer, or Contractor?
Construction Law Cases
The landmark construction industry legal decision concerning the Implied Warranty of Adequacy, stated: ”Where one agrees to do for a fixed sum, a thing possible to be performed, he will not be excused or become entitled to additional compensation because unforeseen difficulties are encountered…But if the contractor is bound to build according to plans and specifications prepared by the owner, the contractor will not be responsible for the consequences of defects in the plans and specifications.” United States v. Spearin, 248 U.S. 132 (1918).
This decision, known as the Spearin Doctrine, applies in public and private construction industry projects, having been adopted by the courts in virtually every state. In Ohio, the Supreme Court denied the contractor’s Spearin claim, despite evidence of the inadequacy of the plans and specifications that included untimely owner responses to 700 RFIs, 250 Field Work Orders, and 85 ASI’s (Architect’s Supplemental Information). The Court’s opinion was based upon the contract’s “no-damages-for-delay” clause, which limited the contractor’s breach of contract damages to the remedy specified in the contract – merely an extension of time. This decision to severely limit the scope of Spearin, in this Ohio case,held that the specific terms of the contract governed, and may preclude the contractor’s right to invoke the Spearin Doctrine as a basis for its claim. Dugan & Meyers Construction Co. v. Ohio Dept. of Administrative Services, 113 Ohio St. 3d 226, 864 N.E.2d 68 (2007).
Construction Contracts – Building Safety and Dangerous Conditions
Contractors’ building safety and other claims may hinge upon specific facts, and the terms of the contract. For example, if the contractor is bound to build according to plans and specifications prepared by the owner, the contractor will not be responsible for the dangerous conditions and consequences of defects in the plans and specifications. Consistent with this legal principle…