Brawley

INTRODUCTION

After fire destroyed an office building known as the Olivewood Medical Arts Center, the four owners of the building contracted with a builder (J.C. Interiors, Inc.) to rebuild the basic structure or “shell” of the building. The contract called for five separate installment payments (or “draws”) of 18 percent of the $532,226 contract price (approximately $96,000 each) plus a “retention” of 10 percent to be paid 30 days after completion of the project. When the owners failed to pay the third draw after the builder claimed it was due, the builder walked off the job. The owners eventually hired someone else to finish the project. One of the four owners, Omer H. Brawley, sued the builder for lost rents Brawley contended he would have earned if the project had been completed by the deadline set forth in the contract. The builder sued the owners and their owners association for nonpayment of the third draw. Three of the owners and the association paid a $100,000 settlement to the builder. Brawley’s suit against the builder, and the builder’s suit (now only against the fourth owner, Brawley) went to trial.

The month-long trial included detailed testimony and…