Kevin Kennedy (Subcontractor): [EXPANSIVE SOILS]
This single family home soils case was supervised by Kevin Kennedy. Our firm’s client was a soils grading contractor, Signs & Pinnick, Inc. Plaintiff’s counsel was Christopher Hagen, Esq. of Ward & Hagen; Developer’s counsel was Tawnya Southern, Esq. of Wood, Smith, Henning & Berman. The case was assigned to the Honorable Luis R. Vargas in San Diego Superior Court. Of the Plaintiff’s total $550,000 cost to repair. $480,000 was for the repair of foundation and building damaged by expansive soils. The soils grader, our client, was a key target defendant. We successfully defeated a demurrer by the soils engineer, Geocon, to our Cross-Complaint in which they had asserted that lack of contractual privity defeated our client’s claims for equitable indemnity. Through selective depositions of soils engineer’s technicians and other witnesses, as well as, deposition of our client, we were able to establish that presence of highly expansive soil is not the responsibility of our client. After a $390,000 settlement demand on our client, we settled the case for $25,000.