White

The plaintiffs shall be referred to herein as “White” and “Aetna”; the defendant as “The District.”

This is an action for declaratory relief in which White and Aetna seek rescission of a construction contract and the return of a bid bond posted by Aetna on behalf of White, the low bidder. The District filed a cross-complaint for damages. Following a trial to the court, judgment was entered in favor of The District on the complaint and on the cross-complaint, and against White and Aetna. The District’s damages were fixed at $42,789. There is no substantial conflict in the testimony or in the documentary evidence. The issue on appeal is the court’s interpretation of the evidence and the applicable law.

The controversy arose in this way: The District invited bids on a construction project which was divided into four separate entities for bidding purposes. White was low bidder on one segment of the project, i.e., a regulating reservoir. With his bid, White filed a surety bond by Aetna in the sum of $42,789.

Eight other bids were received for the work on which White was the low bidder. When the bids were opened, they ran from White’s low bid of $427,890 to a high bid of…