Spectrum Interiors v. Exterior Walls, 65 So.3d 543 (Fla 5th DCA 2011)

Outcome: Obtained Final Judgment for our client after a 2-week Jury Trial; Prevailed again at the contested Retrial before the trial judge; prevailed after two post-trial appeals; Total recovery: $1,697,430.

Description: Our client was a stucco subcontractor (EWI)who was owed money for work done on a luxury condo building in Flagler County. The Tennessee Contractor (Spectrum) we sued prefered to go to Arbitration. We obtained a trial court ruling denying Arbitration. Defendant Spectrum appealed to the Fifth DCA, claiming the construction contract documents included clauses to which the parties agreed to Arbitration. Spectrum preferred arbitration because it gave them procedural and legal advantages over EWI. After lengthy written briefs and oral argument before the appellate court, we obtained another legal ruling in our favor, keeping the case in Florida State court and out of Arbitration. [Spectrum v EWI, 917 So.2d 377 (Fla 5th DCA 2005). We returned to the trial level court where, after a two-week jury trial, we obtained a Final Judgment for EWI of over One Million dollars. The trial required expert witness testimony on subjects including construction schedule analysis, accelleration of the schedule and claims for inefficiencies in the manner the contractor directed subcontractor EWI to perform the stucco work. We also defeated Spectrum's counter-claim of over One Million claimed against EWI and its performance bond surety company. Then the defendants appealed on five grounds, again to Florida's 5th District Court of Appeals. Spectrum lost on four grounds, but did prevail on their claim that EWI had released and assigned any claim it had to Special damages incurred by Spectrum's surety, RLI. The case was remanded to the trial level for a new trial on damages. Spectrum Interiors v. Exterior Walls, 2 So.3d 1093 (5th DCA 2009). At the non-jury trial, our client won again; our opponents appealed again. On June 17, 2011, the appellate court affirmed the trial judgment awarding our client over $500,000.00. The appellated court also sent this case back to the trial level for a determination of how much additional money will be awarded to our client, EWI. Spectrum Interiors v. Exterior Walls, 65 So.3d 543 (Fla 5th DCA 2011).