Motor Vehicle Casualty Co. v. Russian River County Sanitation District

ORDER REMANDING ACTION C-81-3598 AND DISMISSING ACTION C-81-3523 WITHOUT PREJUDICE

INTRODUCTION

These actions arise from a complicated series of transactions relating to the installation of a new wastewater collection system in the Russian River Sanitation District. As the caption to these related cases reveals, the claims surrounding the allegedly defective sewer system involve many parties, each of whom points the finger at someone else as responsible for the resulting damages.

An understanding of the legal issues presented by these motions requires a brief identification of the parties involved and a statement of the relevant facts.

In August, 1976, the Russian River County Sanitation District (“Russian”) retained James M. Montgomery, Consulting Engineers, Inc. (“engineer”) to design á waste-water collection system to replace existing septic tanks and leachfields in the Russian River area of Sonoma County. The general contractor for this project, which required the construction of a forty-two mile pipe system, was Dan Caputo Company and Wagner Construction Company (“contractor”), a joint venture. The contractor’s sureties for the project were Gulf Insurance Company, a…