Gouvis Engineering v. Superior Court

This petition, brought by a nonsettling defendant in a multiparty construction defect case, challenges an order made by the trial court which found the plaintiff’s settlement with a number of codefendants to be “in good faith” in accordance with the terms of Code of Civil Procedure section 877.6. The action was brought by Cambridge Terrace Owners’ Association, a homeowners association representing numerous condominium owners (Association). Framed in counts for negligence, strict liability and breach of warranty, the complaint named as defendants the developer and general contractor on the project (collectively Developers). Developers cross-complained against and joined numerous subcontractors who worked on the project, claiming rights of indemnification. Association sought recovery for numerous categories of alleged construction defects, theoretically giving rise to cross-claims by Developers against virtually every subcontractor.

Global settlement discussions eventually resulted in an agreement whereby Association settled with Developers and Developers settled with 21 of the subcontractors. Three subcontractors did not settle, one of which was Gouvis Engineering, the…