Doucette v. Barthelemy

598 So. 2d 600, 1992 La. App. LEXIS 1109, 1992 WL 73779
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedApril 14, 1992
DocketNo. 91-CA-1332
StatusPublished

This text of 598 So. 2d 600 (Doucette v. Barthelemy) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Doucette v. Barthelemy, 598 So. 2d 600, 1992 La. App. LEXIS 1109, 1992 WL 73779 (La. Ct. App. 1992).

Opinion

CIACCIO, Judge.

Plaintiffs, Sterling Doucette, Sterling Doucette Builders, Inc. and Louis Butler, appeal from two judgments of the district court maintaining defendants’ exceptions of no cause of action and prescription, dismissing their suit against the defendants. We affirm.

In July of 1986, the Louisiana Legislature enacted Act 309 authorizing the Audubon Park Commission to acquire riverfront property in New Orleans for the purpose of constructing and operating the Aquarium [601]*601of the Americas. Pursuant to the legislation, the Audubon Park Commission established a minority business enterprise plan to assist and encourage minority business participation in the construction of the project. Audubon Park Commission appointed Clarence Williams as the minority business coordinator for the Aquarium project.

On April 21, 1988, the Commission accepted bids for the construction of the Aquarium and the Riverfront Park. As the lowest bidder, Woodrow Wilson Construction Company, Inc., (hereinafter Woodrow Wilson), and the Commission entered into a contract on May 25, 1985 for the construction of the project. Shortly thereafter, Woodrow Wilson executed two subcontracts with plaintiff, Sterling Dou-cette Builders, Inc., totalling five million dollars for the furnishing of labor and materials for the concrete work on the Aquarium project.

The contract between Woodrow Wilson and the Audubon Park Commission expressly provided that all subcontractors employed in the construction of the Aquarium project with contracts exceeding one hundred thousand dollars “must be bonded by a good and solvent surety.” Plaintiffs allege in their petition that despite this requirement Sterling Doucette Builders entered into an agreement with Woodrow Wilson allowing Doucette to commence work under the subcontract even though it was unable to secure the bond.

In the fall of 1988, Sterling Doucette Builders fell behind on work schedules due to financial problems. Plaintiffs were unable to meet their payroll, material and supply costs, thus resulting in several liens against the Aquarium project. On December 29, 1988, Woodrow Wilson demanded that plaintiffs pay the lien holders within seven days or its subcontracts would be terminated. On January 6, 1989, Woodrow Wilson terminated its subcontracts with plaintiffs for their failure to comply with their obligations under the contracts.

On September 28, 1990, Sterling Dou-cette Builders, its president and owner, Sterling Doucette, and Louis Butler, its vice-president and a part owner, filed suit against the Audubon Park Commission; Clarence Williams; Mayor Sidney Barthele-my; Woodrow Wilson Construction Company; its vice-president, W. Kurt Wilson; The Travelers Insurance Company, the liability and bonding carrier of Woodrow Wilson; and Mayeaux and Larrowe, Inc., the bonding agent for Woodrow Wilson.

In their petition seeking general and punitive damages, plaintiffs assert a claim for breach of contract, alleging Woodrow Wilson and Kurt Wilson breached the subcontract and engaged in other wrongful acts making Doucette’s performance under the subcontract impossible. Plaintiffs also allege that the defendants violated their civil rights under 42 U.S.C. Section 1981.

On November 8, 1990 defendants, Audubon Park Commission, Clarence Williams and Mayor Barthelemy filed exceptions of no cause of action and prescription. In a judgment rendered on December 27, 1990 the trial court maintained the exceptions of no cause of action and prescription. In its reasons for judgment the trial court stated:

This Court, after a careful review of the pleadings and memoranda, found that plaintiffs’ petition set forth no cause of action for which relief could be granted to plaintiffs under the law. There is no privity of contract between the plaintiffs and the exceptors and no duty which was owed by the exceptors to plaintiffs which was breached; therefore, plaintiffs have no cause of action in contract. Plaintiffs did not allege nor show any legal connection between exceptors and the damages claimed. Plaintiffs also failed to state a cause of action in tort and even if they had stated such a cause of action, which they did not, any action in tort prescribed under Louisiana Civil Code article 3492.

The trial court also rendered a judgment on March 11, 1991, maintaining exceptions of prescription and no right of action which were filed on behalf of Travelers and May-eaux and Larrowe. Plaintiffs appeal from these two trial court judgments.

On appeal, plaintiffs argue that the trial court erred in concluding that their petition fails to state a cause of action [602]*602under 42 U.S.C. Section 1981. They further argue that the trial court erred in finding that their contractual claims had prescribed. Pretermitting the issue of whether plaintiffs have stated a cause of action under 42 U.S.C. Section 1981, we conclude that any causes of action plaintiffs may have against the defendants have prescribed.

42 U.S.C. Section 1981 provides that:

All persons within the jurisdiction of the United States shall have the same right in every State and Territory to make and enforce contracts to sue, be parties, give evidence, and to the full and equal benefit of all laws and proceedings for the security of persons and property as is enjoyed by white citizens, and shall be subject to like punishment, pains, penalties, taxes, licenses, and exactions of every kind, and to no other.

Because section 1981 states no prescriptive period, the Court in Page v. U.S. Industries, Inc., 556 F.2d 346 (1977) looked to the applicable state statutes of limitation and concluded that “actions giving rise to section 1981 claims are proscribed by the one-year provision of Louisiana Civil Code art. 3586”.1 The court in Page found that Louisiana Law characterized an action alleging discrimination on the basis of race in violation of section 1981 as “one sounding in tort — i.e., an ‘offense or quasi-offense.' ”, citing LSA-C.C. art. 3536. 556 F.2d at 352.

In the instant case, plaintiffs allege in their petition that they entered into two subcontracts with Woodrow Wilson on May 26, 1988 and that these contracts were terminated by Woodrow Wilson on January 6, 1989. However, plaintiffs did not file their petition until September 28, 1990, more than one year from the date of the termination of the contracts. Clearly, any claims plaintiffs may have against the defendants based on 42 U.S.C. Section 1981 have prescribed.

Plaintiffs argue on appeal that claims against the defendants for breach of contract are governed by a ten-year prescriptive period as provided in LSA-C.C. art. 3499. They also argue that a subcontractor’s suit against a contractor is subject to a ten year prescriptive period.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Page v. U. S. Industries, Inc.
556 F.2d 346 (Fifth Circuit, 1977)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
598 So. 2d 600, 1992 La. App. LEXIS 1109, 1992 WL 73779, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/doucette-v-barthelemy-lactapp-1992.