Harris v. Davis Construction Systems, Inc.

518 N.E.2d 956, 34 Ohio App. 3d 350, 28 Wage & Hour Cas. (BNA) 1004, 1986 Ohio App. LEXIS 10371
CourtOhio Court of Appeals
DecidedDecember 31, 1986
Docket86AP-482
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 518 N.E.2d 956 (Harris v. Davis Construction Systems, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Ohio Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Harris v. Davis Construction Systems, Inc., 518 N.E.2d 956, 34 Ohio App. 3d 350, 28 Wage & Hour Cas. (BNA) 1004, 1986 Ohio App. LEXIS 10371 (Ohio Ct. App. 1986).

Opinion

Reilly, J.

Third-party plaintiff, Davis Construction Systems, Inc. (“Davis Construction”), and plaintiff-appellant, James W. Harris, Director, Ohio Department of Industrial Relations (the “department”), appeal from a judgment of the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas dismissing Davis Construction’s third-party complaint brought against third-party defendants Eastland Joint Vocational School District Board of Education (“Eastland”), John H. Irvine and Janet Orendorff on a Civ. R. 12(C) motion for judgment on the pleadings.

This case involves a series of contracts entered into between Davis Construction and Eastland during the period from April 11, 1983 through July 27, 1983. Davis contracted with Eastland to paint buildings owned by Eastland. The department instituted an enforcement action pursuant to R.C. 4115.10(C) for $10,330.30 in penalties, attorney fees and other costs against Davis Construction in which the department alleged that Davis Construction failed to pay its employees prevailing wages as provided for in R.C. 4115.03 through 4115.16 (prevailing wage law).

Thereafter, Davis Construction filed its third-party complaint demanding judgment for damages jointly and severally against Eastland, Irvine and Orendorff 5 Davis is found liable to the state.

In the first count of its complaint, Davis Construction alleges that if it is found liable, then:

“7. * * * such liability is entirely the direct and proximate result of the actions or omissions, or other fault of Eastland, in that it neglected, refused or failed in any manner to inform or notify Davis and to include in the written contract notification of any requirement for the payment of ‘prevailing wages’ as required by Section 4115.06 Ohio Revised Code.
“8. Additionally and in the alternative, Eastland neglected, refused or failed to determine the ‘prevailing wages’ as required by Section 4115.04, 4115.08 and 4115.09 Ohio Revised Code.
“9. Additionally and in the alternative, Eastland neglected, refused or failed to designate a ‘wage coordinator’ as required by Section 4115.071 Ohio Revised Code.”

In the second count of its complaint, Davis Construction also seeks recovery against John H. Irvine, Superintendent of Eastland, and Janet Orendorff, Treasurer of Eastland, alleging that their violations of various statutory provisions of the prevailing *352 wage law were the proximate cause of any liability which Davis Construction may incur.

In the third count of its complaint, Davis Construction alleges that if it is found liable:

“15. * * * such liability is in part or in full the direct and proximate result of the deliberate, knowing, intentional or reckless concealment by Irvine, Orendorff, or both of them, from Davis of any requirement for the payment of ‘prevailing wages’ or of the determination of same or of the designation of a ‘wage coordinator’ or of other material and relevant facts.
“16. Irvine, Orendorff or both of them knew or should have known that the proposals submitted by Davis, accepted by Eastland and which became the basis of the contracts referred to hereinabove, could not have been performed at the prices quoted if ‘prevailing wages’ were to be paid by Davis.
“17. Davis has been damaged by the said actions of Irvine, Orendorff, or both of them, in that [it] has been put to time and expense to defend this action, has incurred legal expenses and will incur further legal expenses hereafter, and, may be further damaged, to the extent any judgment may be rendered against [it] herein in favor of Harris or the Department.”

Eastland filed a motion in the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas for judgment on the pleadings pursuant to Civ. R. 12(C). The court sustained the motion in favor of East-land and concluded that:

“The Court concludes that the Prevailing Wage Law (O.R.C. 4115.03 to 4115.16 and 4115.99) in existence when the alleged operative acts occurred imposed no liability on public authorities. Liability is imposed upon public authorities under a recent amendment to O.R.C. 4115.05 but this amendment cannot be retrospectively applied pursuant to O.R.C. 1.48 and Ohio Constitution Article II, § 28.”

Subsequently, Davis Construction filed a motion for relief from judgment pursuant to Civ. R. 60(B) on the ground that the amendment to R.C. 4115.05 is inapplicable to the instant case. In denying Davis Construction’s motion, the court stated that:

“ * * * the Third-Party Defendants are not liable under either the relevant statute in effect at the time the cause of action arose or under that law as amended subsequently.”

Davis Construction and the Attorney General, on behalf of the department, filed their appeal to this court. Davis Construction advances the following five assignments of error:

“1. The court of common pleas erred in failing to find the third-party defendants liable under common law for breach of contract.
“2. The court of common pleas erred in holding that the third-party defendants are not liable under the law as amended and concluding that for this reason Eastland is not liable in this case.
“3. The court of common pleas erred in holding that the third-party defendants are not liable under the relevant statute at the time the cause- of action arose.
“4. The court of common pleas erred in failing to find the third-party defendants liable to Davis for fraudulent enducement [sic] to contract.
“5. The court of common pleas erred in failing to find Irvine and Oren-dorff liable.”

Moreover, the department has also submitted a single assignment of error alleging that the trial court erred in granting Eastland’s motion for judgment on the pleadings. This assignment of error will be discussed under the third assignment of error of Davis Construction.

In the first assignment of error, Davis Construction contends that Eastland is liable to it in quantum meruit in the amount of $10,250.74. *353 Davis Construction asserts that to place the entire burden of paying $10,250.74 of prevailing wages upon it would have the effect of unjustly enriching Eastland.

It is undisputed that Eastland paid the entire contractual amount for the services performed by Davis Construction. In essence, the additional sum which Davis Construction seeks to recover under the remedy of quantum meruit is for any amount which it may be found to owe its employees for acting in violation of the prevailing wage law.

Davis Construction’s reliance upon the case of Lathrop Co. v. Toledo (1966), 5 Ohio St. 2d 165, 34 O.O. 2d 278, 214 N.E. 2d 408, is misplaced.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
518 N.E.2d 956, 34 Ohio App. 3d 350, 28 Wage & Hour Cas. (BNA) 1004, 1986 Ohio App. LEXIS 10371, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/harris-v-davis-construction-systems-inc-ohioctapp-1986.