Armenta

INTRODUCTION

Luis and Laurentia Armenta, Diana and Talal Rada, Camille Bizot, Carlos

Alvarez, Aaron Salinas, Keith and Patricia Dauschmidt, Rosina Orozco, Theresa and Gerassimos Messoloras and Berneta Nelson (collectively plaintiffs) agreed to purchase

units in a condominium development in the Tijuana-Ensenada area of Baja, Mexico. The

project owner and contractor failed to complete and deliver the units as promised.

Plaintiffs sued not only the owner, contractor and the escrow holder with which plaintiffs

made their deposits, but also First American Fund Control, Inc. (First American), which

acted as the fund control or joint control agent for the project. Pursuant to an agreement

with only the project owner and the contractor, First American established a separate

escrow account for the project, accepted deposits and issued disbursements for

construction of the project based on certified requests for payment. The trial court

granted First American summary judgment finding it owed no duty to plaintiffs, who

were not parties to the fund control escrow and finding the negligence action was barred

by the statute of limitations.

On appeal, plaintiffs contend the general…