Does your business issue invoices requiring the payment of interest on outstanding arrears? Do those terms match a current and valid credit agreement between your business and the customer? Although you may think that you are entitled to interest at the rate stated on your invoice, the recent case of a wood supplier and cabinetmaker indicates…
The recent case of a homeowner and contractor demonstrates, yet again, why contractors, even on small jobs, should make sure that they cover off basic contractual points in writing. The alternative: rough justice. FACTS On April 30, 2002, Ms. Ford and Mr. Chan met and agreed verbally that Chan would build an English country garden…
A long hot summer resulted in some different Court decisions. But the very recent British Columbia case (July 2005) involving an African hunting safari of exotic game and a taxidermist is evidence that the law, even when applied to strange facts, can bring about just results. FACTS In this case three men travelled to Zimbabwe…
Does defective work always result in liability? A recent case between a homeowner and a contractor shows that a contractor may not necessarily be liable for damage to a new home. FACTS In this case the homeowner purchased a building lot and hired the contractor to build a custom home. Within two years after construction…
Old joke, but it made for a difficult and expensive lesson in a recent case involving a drywall contractor. FACTS The drywaller verbally agreed to mud and tape about 21,000 square feet at a fixed price per square foot. Unfortunately, the drywaller didn’t see the job site until he arrived to begin work. The boarding…
Now there is a philosophical question! But it is also a legal one. In the law of contracts, “agreements to agree” are not enforceable. However, there are many situations where all terms of an agreement are not or cannot be determined or specified at the time of the original deal, and are left open to…
Often those starting up or otherwise involved in construction businesses do so in partnerships. But rarely is sufficient thought given to the dangers of doing so, as was painfully experienced by an innocent partner in a case decided by the British Columbia Supreme Court recently. FACTS Two architects worked together for years in operating a…