J & J Excavating v. Doyne Construction Co.

391 S.W.3d 367, 2012 Ark. App. 142, 2012 WL 475006, 2012 Ark. App. LEXIS 251
CourtCourt of Appeals of Arkansas
DecidedFebruary 15, 2012
DocketNo. CA 11-264
StatusPublished

This text of 391 S.W.3d 367 (J & J Excavating v. Doyne Construction Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Arkansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
J & J Excavating v. Doyne Construction Co., 391 S.W.3d 367, 2012 Ark. App. 142, 2012 WL 475006, 2012 Ark. App. LEXIS 251 (Ark. Ct. App. 2012).

Opinions

ROBERT J. GLADWIN, Judge.

|TOn November 17, 2010, the Pulaski County Circuit Court granted summary judgment to appellees Doyne Construction Company (Doyne) and Liberty Mutual Insurance Company, citing Arkansas Code Annotated section 17-25-103 (Repl.2010) as barring any action against them from appellant J & J Excavating. On appeal, appellant argues that the statute is unconstitutional and that summary judgment was improper. We affirm.

I. Statement of Facts

On April 25, 2006, appellant, a father- and-son excavating company, contracted with appellee Doyne, a commercial construction company, to perform the following work in connection with a construction project described as “LRFD Fire Training Facility at Little Rock, Arkansas” for a total price of $107,000:

12Provide labor, material, equipment, insurance, and taxes required to perform the site demolition, area cut and fill work required in accordance with the plans and specifications dated January 18, 2006, Addendum Number 1 dated February 8, 2006 and Addendum Number 2 dated February 14, 2006 and in accordance with your proposal dated February 21, 2006 and Exhibit “A”, “B” and “C” reference attached.

On October 30, 2006, appellant contracted with appellee Doyne to perform the following work in connection with a construction project described as “Arkansas Children’s Hospital — General Pediatric Clinic II” for a total price of $192,500:

Provide labor, material, equipment, insurance, and taxes required to perform the site demo and excavation including tree removal/stump grinding, erosion control, storm drain, foundation drain, roof drain, prep and backfill at curb/gutter, sawcutting asphalt and concrete for excavation work, temporary construction entrances and tracking pad(s) in accordance with the project plans, specifications, and all addendums.

Appellee Liberty Mutual Insurance Company executed and delivered payment bonds in connection with each of these projects. Appellant did not have a valid Arkansas contractor’s license at the time it entered into these contracts and claims that appellee Doyne was aware of the fact and expressly authorized appellant to work under its contractor’s license and bonds. A dispute arose between the parties concerning appellant’s performance of its contract(s) and its entitlement to payment of the contract proceeds. On July 9, 2007, appellant filed a complaint against appel-lees to collect the disputed proceeds. Ap-pellees denied liability on factual grounds and asserted Arkansas Code Annotated section 17 — 25—103(d) as a legal bar to the enforcement of the contracts. On March 27, 2009, appellees moved for summary judgment on the sole ground that appellant’s cause of action was barred by the statute because appellant did not have a valid Arkansas contractor’s license when it entered into the contracts described in the complaint. In response, appellant asserted that it was not | sa contractor, as defined in the Arkansas contractor’s licensing laws, and that issues of material fact had to be developed in discovery before the motion for summary judgment was ripe for adjudication.

Appellant was permitted to conduct its discovery and eventually argued that the motion for summary judgment should be denied because issues of material fact— whether appellee Doyne knew that appellant did not have a contractor’s license and whether appellee Doyne allowed appellant to perform its work using Doyne’s contractor’s license — prevented the entry of judgment as a matter of law. Appellant did not challenge the constitutionality of Arkansas Code Annotated section 17-25-103(d) in the trial court.

On November 17, 2010, the trial court entered a judgment and order granting the motion for summary judgment. Appellant filed a timely notice of appeal, and this appeal followed.

II. Applicable Law

Arkansas Code Annotated section 17-25-103(a)(l)(A) generally provides that a contractor may not enter into a contract for construction when the cost of the work to be done, including labor and materials, is $20,000 or more, without first having procured a license with the proper classification to engage in the business of contracting. Subsection (d) provides that no action may be brought either at law or in equity to enforce any provision of any contract entered into in violation of the statute. Further, no action may be brought either at law or in equity for quantum meruit by any contractor in violation of the statute. Ark.Code Ann. § 17-25-103(d).

|4III. Constitutionality

Appellant first argues that subsection (d) of section 17-25-103 is unconstitutional as written. Appellant points to the Constitution of the State of Arkansas, which states, “No bill of attainder, ex post facto law, or law impairing the obligation of contracts shall ever be passed; and no conviction shall work corruption of blood or forfeiture of estate.” Ark. Const, art. 2, § 17. Appellant maintains that inherent in the freedoms afforded to citizens of this State is the ability to contract freely. Further, a crucial part of that freedom to contract with individuals and the State is the ability of citizens to enforce the terms and conditions of those contracts in the event of a breach. Appellant claims that Arkansas Code Annotated section 17-25-103(d) impairs the obligations of contracts and should, therefore, be deemed unconstitutional. See Leach v. Smith, 25 Ark. 246 (1868) (where the Arkansas Supreme Court held that the Confederate Money Act of 1867 was unconstitutional because it impaired the obligation of contracts).

There is no record of appellant’s argument regarding unconstitutionality of the statute presented in the trial court. The Arkansas Supreme Court has repeatedly held that the failure to obtain a ruling, even with respect to a constitutional question, precludes the issue on appeal. State Farm Fire & Cas. Co. v. Ledbetter, 355 Ark. 28, 129 S.W.3d 815 (2003); Technical Servs. of Ark, Inc. v. Pledger, 320 Ark. 333, 896 S.W.2d 433 (1995). In this case, the trial court’s order did not include a ruling on the constitutionality of Arkansas Code Annotated section 17-25-103(d). Because there was no ruling below, this court is procedurally barred from addressing the issue on appeal.

IfilV. Summary Judgment

Summary judgment is to be granted by a trial court only when it is clear that there are no genuine issues of material fact to be litigated and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Gonzales v. City of DeWitt, 357 Ark. 10, 159 S.W.3d 298 (2004). On appellate review, we must determine whether summary judgment was proper • based on whether the evidence presented by the moving party left a material fact unanswered. Windsong Enters., Inc. v. Upton, 366 Ark. 23, 233 S.W.3d 145 (2006). This court views the evidence in the light most favorable to the party against whom the motion was filed, resolving all doubts and inferences against the moving party. Cole v. Laws, 349 Ark. 177, 76 S.W.3d 878, cert.

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Bluebook (online)
391 S.W.3d 367, 2012 Ark. App. 142, 2012 WL 475006, 2012 Ark. App. LEXIS 251, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/j-j-excavating-v-doyne-construction-co-arkctapp-2012.