L & A Contracting Co. v. Mabry

637 So. 2d 1090, 1994 La. App. LEXIS 1293, 1994 WL 172276
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedMay 4, 1994
DocketNo. 25823-CA
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 637 So. 2d 1090 (L & A Contracting Co. v. Mabry) 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
L & A Contracting Co. v. Mabry, 637 So. 2d 1090, 1994 La. App. LEXIS 1293, 1994 WL 172276 (La. Ct. App. 1994).

Opinions

LINDSAY, Judge.

The appellant, L & A Contracting Company, Inc., appeals from a trial court judgment dismissing its mandamus action against Wil-na Mabry, the Clerk of Court and Ex-Officio Recorder of Mortgages for Bossier Parish. The appellant contends that the lien filed against it under the Public Works Act on behalf of its subcontractor, Ram Industrial Coatings, Inc., (hereinafter “Ram Industrial”), was improperly filed and that mandamus was the proper procedural vehicle by which to seek cancellation of the lien. For the reasons assigned below, we reverse the judgment of the trial court and remand this case to the trial court for further proceedings.

FACTS

In May of 1989, the appellant entered into a construction contract with the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development to renovate a bridge over the Red River in Bossier Parish. The appellant sub[1092]*1092contracted the painting portion of the job to Ram Industrial. Subsequently, a dispute arose that caused the appellant to place Ram Industrial in default and terminate the subcontract.

The subcontract contained a non-assigna-bility clause prohibiting the subcontractor from assigning the subcontract without the appellant’s prior written consent. However, Ram Industrial apparently assigned the contract to a new corporation, Ram Coating Technology Corporation (hereinafter “Ram Coating”).

On July 2, 1992, the appellant filed suit against Ram Industrial and its performance surety, Transamerica Premier Insurance Company, in East Baton Rouge Parish. It sought damages in the amount of $544,520, plus penalties, legal interest, reasonable attorney fees, and all court costs. On July 23, 1992, Ram Coating filed an answer and re-conventional demand “as successor in interest to^Ram Industrial Coatings, Inc.” In its reconventional demand in that suit, Ram Coating sought recognition of a lien filed in Bossier Parish on June 8, 1992, under the Public Works Act, LSA-R.S. 38:2241, et seq.

On February 22, 1993, the appellant filed the instant suit in Bossier Parish in which it sought a writ of mandamus to compel the Clerk of Court to cancel the lien from the parish mortgage records. The only named defendant was the clerk of court.

According to the allegations of the appellant’s petition, the Louisiana Public Works Act extends a privilege only to a “claimant,” which is defined under LSA-R.S. 38:2242 as a “person” to whom money is due under a “contract.” The appellant contended that neither Ram Industrial nor Ram Coating was a juridical person because they both had been dissolved in Florida, the state of their incorporation. Additionally, the appellant claimed that Ram Coating could not present any judicial demand before a Louisiana court under LSA-R.S. 12:301 and 12:314 because it was not a juridical person or registered to do business in this state.

As an additional basis for cancellation of the lien, the appellant asserted that there was no contract between it and Ram Coating, which was not a licensed Louisiana contractor. The appellant maintained that its contract was with Ram Industrial for the performance of a Public Works project in excess of $50,000; that any person performing work for improvement of immovable property in excess of $50,000 was required to have a valid Louisiana contractor’s license; and that any contract for improvement of immovable property in excess of $50,000 by an entity not duly licensed as a Louisiana contractor was null and ^unenforceable. Based upon these allegations, appellant sought a writ of mandamus directing the Clerk of Court to cancel the lien.

The Clerk of Court filed an answer and peremptory exception of nonjoinder of indispensable party. She asserted that Ram Coating was an indispensable party because the plaintiff’s cause of action was against the person required under LSA-R.S. 38:2242.1 to deliver written authorization to the recorder of mortgages directing cancellation of the lien.

Transamerica, as surety of Ram Industrial, obtained permission to intervene in opposition to the cancellation of the lien. It contended that the proper procedural device was a petition for declaratory judgment, not a writ of mandamus.

On March 4, 1993, the matter was argued in the trial court. On March 8, 1993, the trial court issued written reasons dismissing the action. It agreed with Transamerica that declaratory judgment was the appropriate format for resolving the issues in this case. Accordingly, a judgment dismissing the plaintiffs petition was signed on June 14, 1993.

The plaintiff appealed, asserting that the trial court erred in the following respects: (1) ruling that mandamus was not the proper procedure for cancelling the statement of claim or privilege; (2) failing to grant the mandamus where the lien holder had no juridical personality and no contractual relationship with the appellant and thus was not a claimant under the Public Works Act; and (3) failing to grant the mandamus when the lien holder never sought authorization to do business in the state of Louisiana and was therefore allegedly precluded from present[1093]*1093ing any judicial demand in a Louisiana court. Based upon our resolution uof the first assignment of error, we pretermit consideration of the last two assignments, which concern the merits of the lien filed against the appellant.

In brief, the Bossier Parish Clerk of Court announced her readiness to perform her legal duties as directed by this court. She asserts that her only concern is that the lien holder receive due process in the form of some notice of the Bossier suit, pursuant to Matkeme v. Guilliot, 544 So.2d 723 (La.App. 3d Cir.1989), writ denied, 551 So.2d 633 (La.1989).

LAW

LSA-R.S. 38:2242.1 provides, in pertinent part:

A. If a statement of claim or privilege is improperly filed or if the claim or privilege preserved by the filing of a statement of claim or privilege is extinguished, the public entity, contractor, or subcontractor, or other interested person may require the person who has filed a statement of claim or privilege to give a written authorization directing the recorder of mortgages to cancel the statement of claim or privilege from his records. The authorization shall be given within ten days after a written request for authorization has been received by the person filing the statement of claim or privilege from a person entitled to demand it.
B. One who, without reasonable cause, fails to deliver written authorization to cancel a statement of claim or privilege as required by Subsection A of this Section shall be liable for damages suffered by the public entity, contractor, subcontractor, or other interested person requesting the authorization as a consequence of the failure and for reasonable attorney’s fees incurred in causing the statement to be cancelled.
C. A person who has properly requested written authorization for cancellation shall have an action against the person required to deliver the authorization to obtain a judgment declaring the claim or privilege extinguished and directing the recorder of mortgages to cancel the statement of claim or privilege if the person required to give the authorization fails or refuses to do so within the time required by Subsection A of this Section. The plaintiff may also seek recovery of damages and attorney’s fees to which he may be entitled under this Section.
D.

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Related

Gootee Construction, Inc. v. Atkins
178 So. 3d 629 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2015)
L & A Contracting Co. v. Mabry
666 So. 2d 1295 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 1996)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
637 So. 2d 1090, 1994 La. App. LEXIS 1293, 1994 WL 172276, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/l-a-contracting-co-v-mabry-lactapp-1994.