ATTORNEY FEES: $532,662.35 fees & costs awarded 3rd-party Defendant flooring subcontractor and against Defendants/Counterclaimants contractor, realtors, and their joint counsel in convoluted litigation over hardwood flooring finish… subpoena for discovery as to whether fees or costs were paid by insurer denied as irrelevant to reasonableness… motion for relief from sanctions denied… Larson. [Read more…]
Sanctions, frivolous/vexatious, counsel & clients
SANCTIONS: Court’s “clarification of application of order” finding counsel and clients in defective flooring case liable for sanctions for frivolous/vexatious conduct provided for new counsel… Larson. [Read more…]
Discovery sanctions against counsel, business partners
DISCOVERY SANCTIONS: 3rd-Party Plaintiff’s counsel and business partners liable for sanctions awarded against “insolvent” 3rd-Party Plaintiff… Larson. [Read more…]
Indemnification, home contractor, flooring subcontractor
INDEMNIFICATION not allowed by Defendant home contractor against flooring subcontractor who is not liable to Plaintiffs who never purchased the home in hardwood flooring case… Larson. [Read more…]
Insurance, duty to defend defective siding claims
INSURANCE: Seeking declaratory judgment as to duty to defend defective siding claims does not constitute direct or anticipatory repudiation breach of contract but is endorsed by Montana Supreme Court… duty to indemnify for insured’s out-of-pocket settlements brokered without insurer’s consent not plausible breach of contract… plaintiff in underlying State Court suit against siding Defendant not a necessary party to declaratory action under rationale forged by this Court in light of open question in 9th Circuit… Landis stay of declaratory action granted as to on-the-merits determination of whether claims in State Court suit are covered by Policy, denied in all other respects… Christensen. [Read more…]
Well contamination, 3rd-party driller settled/dismissed
WELL CONTAMINATION: Driller of well at bar & grill found to be contaminated with fuel from store/gas station across the street dismissed from store’s 3rd-party claims after settling with bar & grill although not joint tortfeasor but under Deere/Durden rationale… main case settled eve of trial… Berger. [Read more…]
Spoliation, excavator bucket falling on worker in trench
SPOLIATION: First-impression issues in context of settled parties involving excavator bucket falling on worker in trench and inspections without notice to sewer contractor and removal of machinery resolved by finding of negligent — not intentional — spoliation and payment of expenses including attorney fees for contractor to conduct its own inspection… $33,277 awarded of $83,190 requested… Marks. [Read more…]
Defective yard hydrants, tort v. contract gravamen
DEFECTIVE YARD HYDRANTS: Gravamen of claims that hydrants violated plumbing cross-connection regulation sounds in tort, not contract, time-barred, no justiciable controversy to support declaratory judgment request. . . complaint dismissed with prejudice. . . Jones. [Read more…]
Defective yard hydrants
DEFECTIVE YARD HYDRANTS: Constitutional (clean/healthful environment) tort, negligence, declaratory, breach of contract claims by water district against DEQ dismissed on summary judgment… professional negligence claim against engineers time-barred, further briefing required as to whether gravamen sounds in tort… Jones. [Read more…]
Constitutional tort, defective yard hydrants
CONSTITUTIONAL TORT claim by water/sewer district against engineers of defective yard hydrants dismissed as “adequate alternatie remedies” are available under breach of contract/negligence theories… Jones. [Read more…]