JRW Services Group v. Camp, G.

CourtSuperior Court of Pennsylvania
DecidedSeptember 6, 2017
DocketJRW Services Group v. Camp, G. No. 2987 EDA 2016
StatusUnpublished

This text of JRW Services Group v. Camp, G. (JRW Services Group v. Camp, G.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Superior Court of Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
JRW Services Group v. Camp, G., (Pa. Ct. App. 2017).

Opinion

J-A14032-17

NON-PRECEDENTIAL DECISION - SEE SUPERIOR COURT I.O.P. 65.37

JRW SERVICES GROUP, LLC, IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF PENNSYLVANIA Appellee

v.

GEORGE REX CAMP, III AND INVESTORS MANAGEMENT SERVICES, LLC,

Appellants No. 2987 EDA 2016

Appeal from the Judgment Entered August 31, 2016 In the Court of Common Pleas of Chester County Civil Division at No(s): 15-02657

BEFORE: BENDER, P.J.E., BOWES and SHOGAN, JJ.

MEMORANDUM BY SHOGAN, J.: FILED SEPTEMBER 06, 2017

Appellants George Rex Camp, III (“Camp”) and Investors Management

Services, LLC (“IMS”) appeal the entry of judgment in favor of JRW Services

Group, LLC (“JRW”), following the denial of their alternative motions for

judgment notwithstanding the verdict (“JNOV”) and a new trial.1 We affirm.

This action stems from the renovation of an office building in Malvern,

Pennsylvania, that took place from October of 2013 through May of 2014.

IMS was the general contractor of the project. Camp was the principal of

____________________________________________

1 Appellants purport to appeal from the order denying their post-trial motions. However, an appeal properly lies from the entry of judgment. Johnston the Florist, Inc. v. TEDCO Const. Corp., 657 A.2d 511, 514 (Pa.Super.1995). Here, judgment was entered in favor of JRW on August 31, 2016. We have amended the caption accordingly. J-A14032-17

IMS. On November 24, 2013, Appellants entered into a subcontractor

agreement (“Agreement”) with JRW to provide heating/ventilation/air-

conditioning (“HVAC”) and plumbing services for the project at a total cost of

$403,245 ($350,925 for the HVAC system and $52,320 for the plumbing).

The Agreement also provided that “no deviations from the work specified in

the contract will be permitted or paid for unless a written extra work or

change order is first agreed upon and signed.” Agreement, 11/24/13, at ¶

4. Despite the written change order provision, some oral modifications to

the work were made and memorialized in emails.

After the project was completed and certain invoices remained

outstanding, Appellants advised JRW that the owners of the property would

be paying JRW directly for those invoices. Appellants failed and/or refused

to pay JRW a total of $63,778.90 in unpaid invoices for the project.

JRW initiated this matter by filing a complaint dated March 30, 2015,

which raised two counts: one for breach of contract and one for violation of

the Pennsylvania Contractor and Subcontractor Payment Act (“CASPA”), 73

P.S. §§ 501—516.2 On June 25, 2015, Appellants filed an amended answer,

2 CASPA is:

a comprehensive statute enacted in 1994 to cure abuses within the building industry involving payments due from owners to contractors, contractors to subcontractors, and subcontractors to other subcontractors. The underlying purpose of CASPA is to protect contractors and subcontractors and to encourage fair (Footnote Continued Next Page)

-2- J-A14032-17

new matter, and counterclaim against JRW. In their answer, Appellants did

not specifically deny any of JRW’s factual allegations. In their counterclaim,

Appellants presented five counts: breach of contract-overpayment, unjust

enrichment-overpayment, breach of contract-nonperformance for system

failure, unjust enrichment-nonperformance for system failure, and

promissory estoppel. On July 15, 2016, JRW replied to Appellants’ new

matter and answered Appellants’ counterclaim.

After discovery was closed, Appellants filed a motion for summary

judgment on March 21, 2016, and JRW filed a response. The trial court

declined to rule on the motion. Appellants then filed a motion in limine to

prevent JRW from introducing evidence of Appellants’ payment practices

with regard to other project subcontractors, which motion the trial court

granted. Order, 5/16/16.

A jury trial began on May 16, 2016, and on May 18, 2016, the jury

returned a verdict in favor of JRW on JRW’s breach-of-contract count against

_______________________ (Footnote Continued)

dealing among parties to a construction contract. The statute provides rules and deadlines to ensure prompt payments, to discourage unreasonable withholding of payments, and to address the matter of progress payments and retainages. Under circumstances prescribed in the statute, interest, penalty, attorney fees and litigation expenses may be imposed on an owner, contractor or subcontractor who fails to make payment to a contractor or subcontractor in compliance with the statute.

Zimmerman v. Harrisburg Fudd I, L.P., 984 A.2d 497, 500–501 (Pa. Super. 2009) (brackets, citation, quotation marks, and footnote omitted).

-3- J-A14032-17

IMS in the amount of $55,812. Additionally, the jury found that Camp

assumed individual liability under the Agreement and breached the

Agreement, but it did not assess damages against him. With regard to

JRW’s CASPA count, the jury found that IMS violated the CASPA. The jury

also determined that IMS was obligated to pay JRW as of June 19, 2014.

Lastly, the jury found in favor of JRW on Appellants’ counterclaims.

On May 23, 2016, JRW filed a petition for attorneys’ fees, interest, and

penalties under the CASPA, which the trial court granted on July 11, 2016.

On May 31, 2016, Appellants filed post-trial motions seeking JNOV, or

alternatively, a new trial. The trial court heard oral argument on August 5,

2016, and denied the motions on August 16, 2016. Judgment was entered

in favor of JRW on August 31, 2016. This timely appeal followed. Appellants

and the trial court complied with Pa.R.A.P. 1925.

Appellants present the following issues for our consideration:

1. Whether judgment n.o.v. should be entered in favor of Defendants-Appellants because [JRW’s] claims at trial should have been limited to breach of written contract, as pleaded, and the record makes clear no written change orders were executed as required by the contract?

2. In the alternative, whether Defendants-Appellants are entitled to a new trial because Defendants were unduly prejudiced by [JRW’s] ability to proceed at trial on last-minute oral modification and oral contract claims—which were never pled or noticed and were effectively added mid-trial without motion by [JRW]?

3. In the alternative, whether judgment n.o.v should be entered in favor of Defendants-Appellants, in part, because the

-4- J-A14032-17

record is devoid of any evidence to support a verdict beyond $8,599 in extra fees?

4. Whether Defendant-Appellant George Rex Camp, III, individually, is entitled to judgment n.o.v. because he is not a party to the written contract and no evidence was presented at trial that he personally guaranteed any obligations?

Appellant’s Brief at 3–4.

Appellants first argue they are entitled to JNOV. Appellants’ Brief at

16. Our standard of review regarding JNOV is as follows:

In reviewing a trial court’s decision whether or not to grant judgment in favor of one of the parties, we must consider the evidence, together with all favorable inferences drawn therefrom, in a light most favorable to the verdict winner. Our standard[s] of review when considering motions for a directed verdict and judgment notwithstanding the verdict are identical.

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

Related

Zimmerman v. Harrisburg Fudd I, L.P.
984 A.2d 497 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 2009)
Cercone v. Cercone
386 A.2d 1 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 1978)
Brinich v. Jencka
757 A.2d 388 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 2000)
Johnston the Florist, Inc. v. TEDCO Construction Corp.
657 A.2d 511 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 1995)
Reott v. Asia Trend, Inc.
7 A.3d 830 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 2010)
Joseph v. Scranton Times, L.P.
89 A.3d 251 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 2014)
Focht v. Rosenbaum
34 A. 1001 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1896)
Universal Builders, Inc. v. Moon Motor Lodge, Inc.
244 A.2d 10 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 1968)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
JRW Services Group v. Camp, G., Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/jrw-services-group-v-camp-g-pasuperct-2017.