Chiaramonte Construction & Plumbing v. Gutierrez CA5

FACTS

Plaintiff Chiaramonte Construction & Plumbing, Inc. (Plaintiff) sued several individuals including appellants and defendants Greggory Joe Gutierrez (Gutierrez) and Maria Gutierrez. Plaintiff asserted that he entered into a contract to rebuild defendants’ home that reportedly sustained major fire damage.1 At a court trial, plaintiff produced a contract purportedly signed by Gutierrez. Gutierrez testified he reviewed the contract, agreed to its terms, and met to sign the contract but did not actually sign it because he did not have a working pen. The court inferred that plaintiff’s agent later filled in Gutierrez’s signature. Nonetheless, plaintiff began the work contemplated by the contract with Gutierrez’s knowledge. Consequently, the court found the document was a “binding contract” between plaintiff and defendants. However, the contract did not define the scope of work adequately. As a result, the court found plaintiff was entitled to recover the reasonable value of the actual work performed. The judgment dated November 8, 2021, ultimately provided that plaintiff was to recover $201,576.91 from defendants, among other provisions.2 Defendants Greggory Gutierrez and Maria…