Weber Construction, Inc. v. Spokane County

98 P.3d 60, 124 Wash. App. 29
Court of Appeals of Washington·Decided July 27, 2004·No. No. 21628-4-III·Published·Cited by 13 cases

Opinion

¶1

Kato, C.J.

— Spokane County (County) hired Weber Construction, Inc., to build a road. The project was neither finished on time nor within budget because Weber encountered large boulders it was unable to use to create fill. Weber sued the County for additional compensation. The trial court entered judgment as a matter of law under CR 50 for the County. In March 2003, this court reversed the judgment and determined that whether the County’s actual notice of Weber’s problems with the project constituted a waiver of the contract notice provision was a question for the trier of fact. Our Supreme Court accepted review and remanded for reconsideration in light of Mike M. Johnson, [31]*31Inc. v. Spokane County, 150 Wn.2d 375, 78 P.3d 161 (2003). Determining on reconsideration that Weber presented substantial evidence it either complied with the contractual notice provisions or the County waived strict contractual compliance so as to prevail on the merits, we reverse the trial court and remand for new trial.

¶2 Weber contracted with the County to build a 4.2 mile section of Curtis Road. Upon beginning its excavation, Weber encountered several large boulders unsuitable for fill and embankments. It therefore had to obtain fill from another site. This increased the cost of the project and delayed its completion as well.

¶3 Weber sued the County for additional compensation. The County’s motion for summary judgment was denied. The case proceeded to trial.

¶4 The sole issue was whether the subsurface conditions encountered by Weber constituted a differing site condition under the contract. At the close of Weber’s case in chief, the County moved for judgment as a matter of law under CR 50. It argued Weber did not follow the contract procedure for a formal protest, a jurisdictional prerequisite to filing a claim. The court granted the motion. This court determined that the evidence showed the County had actual notice of Weber’s problems with the project and whether this knowledge constituted a waiver of strict compliance with the contractual notice provisions was a question of fact for the jury to decide. Weber Constr., Inc. v. Spokane County, noted at 116 Wn. App. 1007, slip op. at 8 (2003).

¶5 The Supreme Court directed us to reconsider our prior decision in light of Johnson. There, Johnson was hired to construct two sewer projects for Spokane County. Mike M. Johnson, Inc., 150 Wn.2d at 378. During the course of construction, Johnson discovered a buried telephone line that forced the construction to stop while Spokane County and the telephone company worked out the utility conflict. Id. at 379. The contract required Johnson to use mandatory notice, protest, and formal claim procedures to make claims of additional compensation, time extensions, and changed [32]*32conditions. The contract stated that “[f]ull compliance by the Contractor with the provisions of this section is a contractual condition precedent to the Contractor’s right to seek judicial relief.” Id. at 380.

¶6 Rather than follow mandatory protest and formal claim procedures, Johnson sent the County a letter addressing several concerns. The County answered by telling Johnson to submit a complaint under the procedure in the contract. Johnson responded with another letter. The County again advised Johnson that it did not consider the letters as any formal notification of a claim and asked Johnson to follow the terms and conditions for a protest as set forth in the contract. Id. at 381-82. Johnson continued to send letters. Id. The County continued to respond that it was not waiving any claims or defenses and noted Johnson’s ongoing refusal to follow the procedure in the contract. Id. at 382-83.

¶7 Johnson eventually sued the County for additional compensation. The County argued that Johnson failed to comply with the protest provisions. Id. at 384. The trial court ordered summary judgment dismissal. Id. at 385. Finding that material questions of fact existed as to whether the County’s actual notice of the claims excused Johnson from complying with the mandatory contractual protest and claim procedures, this court reversed. Id.

f 8 Accepting review, the Supreme Court held that a contractor must follow contractual notice provisions unless these procedures are waived. Id. at 386. Actual notice was not an exception to contractual compliance. Id. at 392. But a waiver could be implied through conduct, which must be unequivocal and evidence an intent to waive. Id. The Supreme Court reversed this court’s decision and held that summary judgment dismissal of the claims was proper. Id. at 393.

¶9 Weber claims that its case is distinguishable from Johnson because it did indeed comply with the contractual protest and claim provisions and the County’s actions [33]*33evidenced an intent to waive compliance with those provisions in any event.

¶10 CR 50(a)(1) authorizes a court to grant judgment as a matter of law if “there is no substantial evidence or reasonable inference to sustain a verdict for the non-moving party.” Sing v. John L. Scott, Inc., 134 Wn.2d 24, 29, 948 P.2d 816 (1997). In considering a motion for judgment as a matter of law, a court must treat the nonmoving party’s evidence as true and draw all reasonable inferences from that evidence. Hill v. BCTI Income Fund-I, 144 Wn.2d 172, 187-88, 23 P.3d 440 (2001). Review is de novo. Id.

¶11 The contract here required the parties to abide by the 1988 standards for road construction. Section 1-04.5 detailed the protest procedure, the same provision at issue in Johnson. That section states:

If in disagreement with, anything required in a change order, another written order, or an oral order from the Engineer, including any direction, instruction, interpretation, or determination by the Engineer, the Contractor shall:

1. Immediately give a signed written notice of protest to the Project Engineer or the Project Engineer’s field inspectors before doing the work;

2. Supplement the written protest within 15 calendar days with a written statement providing the following:

a. The date of the protested order;
b. The nature and circumstances which caused the protest;
c. The contract provisions that support the protest;
d. The estimated dollar cost, if any, of the protested work and how that estimate was determined; and
e. An analysis of the progress schedule showing the schedule change or disruption if the Contractor is asserting a schedule change or disruption; and

3. If the protest is continuing, the information required above, shall be supplemented as requested by the Project Engineer. In addition, the Contractor shall provide the Project Engineer, before final payment, a written statement of the actual adjustment requested.

[34]*34Ex. 2 at 1-23. The section also provides that failure to comply with the procedures of sections 1-04.5 and 1-09.11 waived any claim for protested work.

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

Weber Construction, Inc. v. Spokane County, 98 P.3d 60, 124 Wash. App. 29 (Wash. Ct. App. 2004).

98 P.3d 60 (Weber Construction, Inc. v. Spokane County) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

Related

Kathryn Lee Kim, V. Seattle Children Hospital
Court of Appeals of Washington, 2024
C.A. Carey Corporation, V. City of Snoqualmie
Court of Appeals of Washington, 2024
Realm, Inc. v. City of Olympia
277 P.3d 679 (Court of Appeals of Washington, 2012)
Lascheid v. City of Kennewick
154 P.3d 307 (Court of Appeals of Washington, 2007)
AMERICAN SAFETY CASUALTY INS. CO. v. City of Olympia
137 P.3d 865 (Court of Appeals of Washington, 2006)
American Safety Casualty Insurance v. City of Olympia
133 Wash. App. 649 (Court of Appeals of Washington, 2006)
Weber Const., Inc. v. County of Spokane
98 P.3d 60 (Court of Appeals of Washington, 2004)
Weber Construction, Inc. v. Spokane County
122 Wash. App. 1043 (Court of Appeals of Washington, 2004)