Patrick and Brenda O'Connell VS Dale Braud d/b/a Dale's Builders and Remodeling
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NOT DESIGNATED FOR PUBLICATION STATE OF LOUISIANA COURT OF APPEAL FIRST CIRCUIT NUMBER 2010 CA 1885 PATRICK AND BRENDA O CONNELL VERSUS DALE BRAUD DBA DALE SBUILDERS AND REMODELING y Judgment Rendered AU6 10 2011 Appealed from the TwentyThird Judicial District Court In and for the Parish of Ascension State of Louisiana Suit number 90 266 Honorable Thomas J Kliebert Jr Presiding M Brent Hicks Counsel for PlaintiffsAppellees Katherine G Eckert Patrick and Brenda O Connell Baton Rouge LA Barbara Lane Irwin Counsel for Defendant Appellant Timothy E Pujol Matthew Pryor Dale Braud dba Dale Builders and s Remodeling Gonzales LA BEFORE PARRO GUIDRY AND HUGHES JJ GUIDRY J Dale Braud dba Dale Builders and Remodeling Braud appeals from a trial s court judgment awarding Patrick and Brenda O damages pursuant to the Connell New Home Warranty Act La R 9 et seq For the reasons that follow we S 3141 affirm FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY Patrick and Brenda O entered into a builder contract with Braud on Connell s February 28 2000 to construct a new home along the Amite River in Maurepas Louisiana Because of the location of the home it was designed to be raised approximately eight feet off of the ground and to sit on concrete piers Construction of the home was completed in November 2000 and the O moved into the Connells home immediately thereafter In 2003 the O began experiencing water intrusion at the French Connells doors leading to the balcony on the north side of the home contacted Braud who made repairs to the home The O Connells Thereafter the O also Connells began experiencing problems with the screened porch on the west side of the home which was holding water in the middle of the porch floor The O contacted Connells Braud who adjusted the pitch of the porch and installed a drain and drainage system In November 2007 after noticing debris behind a loose soffit panel on the underside of where the screened porch met the deck the O contacted Brett Connells Lukehart a contractor Upon removing all of the soffit panels along the west side of the home Lukehart discovered extensive damage to the beams supporting the porch and deck Thereafter the O contacted Braud by telephone several times Connells informing him of the beam damage Braud however failed to respond to the Connells O requests to examine the damage In late November or December 2007 Lukehart began making repairs to the home 2 On March 11 2008 counsel for the O sent a letter to Braud notifying Connells Braud of the alleged deficiencies in the home When Braud failed to respond to the letter the O filed a petition for damages against Braud on August 29 2008 Connells asserting that there were deficiencies in the home which included but were not limited to 1 water penetration into the home on the west side of the home causing damage to the outer beam and cantilever beam which could have been prevented if treated lumber had been used for the beams 2 beam supporting screened porch and balconydeck on main floor was rotten and deteriorated putting the structure in danger of collapse due to the failure to use treated lumber as required 3 beam supporting porch and running across the outer perimeter of the kitchen called for treated lumber but untreated lumber was used resulting in total deterioration of that beam and sagging of the porch which would have led to its collapse The Connells O asserted that Braud was liable in fraud for all damages suffered and s attorney fees and that he was also liable for the deficiencies pursuant to the terms and conditions of the New Home Warranty Act NHWA The O claimed Connells that they incurred actual repair expenses totaling 97 as a result of the 30 582 deficiencies and prayed for judgment in their favor in an amount reasonable under the premises plus attorney fees and costs as well as for all general and equitable relief s Thereafter Braud filed an exception raising the objections of no cause of action and prescription Braud asserted that the O claims were governed Connells exclusively by the NHWA which exclusivity precluded the O from having Connells a cause of action against Braud for fraud and that their claims had prescribed By judgment dated January 13 2009 the trial court denied Braud exception raising the s objection of no cause of action and partially granted the exception raising the objection of prescription with regard to all claims except those claims arising from damages related to the porch area beams and other beams under points three and four 3 of paragraph five of the O petition i Connells e claims related to the beams supporting the porch which were referred to the merits Following a bench trial the trial court signed a judgment on May 13 2010 in favor of the O in the amount of 57 plus attorney fees to be fixed Connells 00 214 s at a later date Brand subsequently filed a motion for new trial which was denied Braud now appeals from the trial court sjudgment DISCUSSION Standard of Review The trial court factual findings in cases involving the NHWA are subject to s manifest error review Hutcherson v Harvey Smith Construction Inc 08 1046 p 3 La App 1 st Cir 27 So 3d 775 778 An appellate court cannot set aside the 09 13 trial court findings unless it determines there is no reasonable factual basis for the s findings and the findings are clearly wrong Stobart v State Through Department of Transportation and Development 617 So 2d 880 882 La 1993 Thus if the findings are reasonable in light of the record reviewed in its entirety this court may not reverse even though convinced that had it been sitting as the trier of fact it would have weighed the evidence differently Rosen v ESCO 549 So 2d 840 844 La 1989 Furthermore when we review a damage award made pursuant to the NHWA we may not set aside the award made by the trier of fact absent an abuse of discretion On June 10 2010 the O filed a rule to fix attorney Connells sfees Following a hearing on the Connells O rule the trial court signed a judgment on August 18 2010 in favor of the O Connells and against Braud for the stipulated amount of 18 Braud has separately appealed from this 00 000 judgment z On January 27 2011 this court issued a rule to show cause ordering the parties to submit briefs as to why the appeal should not be dismissed due to the apparent defect in the May 13 2010 judgment which specifically excluded a ruling on attorney fees By order dated March 14 2011 s the rule to show cause was referred to the panel hearing the appeal After reviewing the matter we find that the apparent defect was cured when the trial court rendered the August 18 2010 judgment adjudicating the remaining claim between the parties i e fixing the amount of attorney fees See R Claitor Realty v Rigell 061629 p 3 n La s G s 3 App 1st Cir 5961 So 2d 469 471 writ denied 07 1214 La 9964 So 2d 340 see 07 4 07 21 also In re Succession of Grimmett 31 pp 5 6 La App 2nd Cir 3 738 So 2d 27 31 975 99 5 Accordingly we recall the show cause order 4 Graf v Jim Walter Homes Inc 97 1143 p 12 La App 1st Cir 5 713 So 98 15 2d 682 692 Liability Under the NHWA The NHWA provides the exclusive remedies warranties and prescriptive periods as between builder and owner relative to construction defects in new homes La R 9 Louisiana Revised Statute 9 sets forth the mandatory S 3150 A 3144 warranties owed by a builder to an owner as follows Subject to the exclusions provided in Subsection B of this Section every builder warrants the following to the owner 1 One year following the warranty commencement date the home will be free from any defect due to noncompliance with the building standards or due to other defects in materials or workmanship not regulated by building standards 2 Two years following the warranty commencement date the plumbing electrical heating cooling and ventilating systems exclusive of any appliance fixture and equipment will be free from major structural defect due to noncompliance with the building standards or due to other defects in materials or workmanship not regulated by building standards 3 Ten years following the warranty commencement date the home will be free from major structural defects due to noncompliance with the building standards or due to other defects in materials or workmanship not regulated by building standards Louisiana Revised Statute 9 5defines a major structural defect as 3143 ny A actual physical damage to the following designated load bearing portions of a home caused by failure of the load bearing portions which affects their load bearing functions to the extent the home becomes unsafe unsanitary or is otherwise unlivable a Foundation systems and footings b Beams c Girders d Lintels Because the O first occupied their home in November 2000 all references to the NHWA Connells in this opinion are to the provisions of the NHWA in effect at that time See Hutcherson 08 1046 at p 4 7 So 3d at 778 5 e Columns f Walls and partitions g Floor systems h Roof framing systems Emphasis added Braud contends that the trial court erred in finding that the O claims Connells for damages with regard to the rotten wooden beams supporting the porch arise from a major structural defect as that term is defined in La R 9 and S 3143 5 therefore are subject to a tenyear prescriptive period Rather Braud asserts that the Connells O claims are for defective workmanship for Braud alleged improper s flashing and waterproofing of the home which claims are subject to a one year prescriptive period and therefore are prescribed However from our review of the record we find no error in the trial court s determination Brett Lukehart the contractor who performed the repairs to the Connells O home testified that upon removing all the soffit panels on the underside of the porch he immediately noticed a tremendous amount of damage to the beams Lukehart stated that the beams were devoid of any structural integrity that the porch floor was sagging approximately 1a to 1z inches and that collapse of the porch was imminent According to Lukehart the damage to the beams was the result of water penetration caused by the lack of flashing and waterproofing and the lack of transition between the interior and exterior framing of the house Further Lukehart stated that though the plans specifically required all wood coming in contact with masonry to be treated the beams at issue which rested directly on concrete piers were not constructed out of treated lumber Finally Lukehart stated that if these beams which were crucial to the overall structural integrity of the home would have been made from treated lumber they would not have suffered damage from rot 6 Additionally Harry Huey an Ascension Parish building official who inspected the O home stated that the Ascension Parish Building Code requires Connells treated lumber to be used when located within 18 inches of contact with the ground but that the Code does not otherwise state that lumber has to be treated unless it is specified in the building plans itself The building contract and building plans were admitted into evidence at the trial The building plans state that all wood members in contact with concrete shall be treated Additionally the building contract states that The Contractor agrees to erect build finish and deliver described in the specifications a custom home as shown on the drawings and which said drawings and specifications are by reference made a part thereof and together with this agreement form the contract After reviewing the record in its entirety we find that the record reasonably supports the determination that the beams are load bearing and that the failure of the beams due to their rotten condition affected their load bearing functions to the extent that the home was unsafe thereby constituting a major structural defect Further the evidence also reasonably establishes that the existence of this major structural defect was due to noncompliance with the building standards by failing to use treated lumber as agreed to and required by the building plans and due to defects in workmanship by improperly constructing the porch Further we find no merit to Braud argument that the defects are excluded s from the builder warranty because s they are caused by materials or work supplied by anyone other than the builder or any employee agent or subcontractor 4 Louisiana Revised Statute 9 defines b standards as the standards contained 2 3143 uilding in the building code mechanical plumbing code and electrical code in effect in the parish city or other local political subdivision where a home is to be located at the time construction of that home is commenced or if the parish city or other local political subdivision has not adopted such codes the Standard Building Code together with any additional performance standards ifany which the builder may undertake to be in compliance Emphasis added This court has previously found the plain wording of this statute to be broad enough to include the contractual undertakings of the builder including those contained in building plans and specifications See Graf 97 1143 at pp 8 9 713 So 2d at 689 690 7 of the builder See La R 9 Braud asserts that the lumber at issue S 3144 6 B was supplied by someone other than Braud because the Opaid Purpera Connells Lumber Company directly and Purpera supplied the necessary lumber and delivered it directly to the home site However from our review of the record we find no error in the trial court s determination that this exclusion does not apply in the instant case contract at issue provides that he t Contractor agrees to The building furnish all materials shown on the drawings and described in the specifications as Further according to s Braud own testimony he brought the building plans and specifications to Purper Lumber Company and got a breakdown on the house When he was ready he called Purpera and told them to send out different packages iplumbing flooring etc e Therefore not only did Braud have a contractual obligation to supply the materials but he acted in furtherance of the contract by facilitating the acquisition of the materials The fact that the O paid Purpera directly pursuant to the terms of Connells the cost plus contract is of no moment Therefore we find no error in the trial s court determination that the exclusion in La R 9 S 3144 does not apply 6 B Damages Louisiana Revised Statute 9provides A 3149 If a builder violates this Chapter by failing to perform as required by the warranties provided in this Chapter any affected owner shall have a cause of action against the builder for actual damages including attorney fees and court costs arising out of the violation The damages with respect to a single defect shall not exceed the reasonable cost of repair or replacement necessary to cure the defect and damages with respect to all defects in the home shall not exceed the original purchase price of the home In an action on a contract to build the appropriate measure of damages resulting from the contractor breach of the implied warranty of good workmanship s is generally the cost of repairs when the thing can be repaired Graf 97 at p 1143 11 713 So 2d at 691 Under La R 9 S 3149 Athe measure is reasonable cost of 8 repair or replacement necessary to cure the defect See also Graf 97 1143 at p 11 713 So 2d at 691 At trial the O admitted several documents into evidence to show the Connells costs to the repair the home as a result of the defects including a spreadsheet prepared by Brenda O detailing the expenses incurred in the repair of the Connell home as well as the invoices to support those expenses Additionally Lukehart testified regarding the invoices for materials and his invoices for the labor performed in effectuating the repairs to the home and identified the amounts specifically related to repair and replacement of the beams From our review ofthe record we cannot or find that the trial court abused its discretion in awarding 57 in damages for 00 214 the repairs necessary to cure the defects CONCLUSION For the foregoing reasons we affirm the judgment of the trial court All costs of this appeal are assessed to the defendant Dale Braud dba Dale Builders and s Remodeling RULE TO SHOW CAUSE RECALLED AFFIRMED Brand asserts on appeal that the trial court erred in admitting certain pieces of evidence and by not giving him an opportunity to view certain documents However counsel for Brand did not object to the introduction of any evidence at the trial and was given an opportunity to view documents utilized by Lukehart during his testimony Therefore we find this argument to be without merit 9 I I I I
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