The distinction between unjust enrichment claims and quantum meruit claims have long bedeviled courts and practitioners. In Core Finance Team Affiliates v. Maine Medical Center, the Law Court provided important guidance...more
When two companies negotiate a subcontract in support of a federal government prime contract ("federal subcontract"), they may include provisions capping their liability to each other at specific amounts. In structuring such...more
LCT Capital, LLC v. NGL Energy Partners LP, C.A. No. N15C-08-109 JJC CCLD (Del. Super. Ct. June 20, 2023) - Under Superior Court Rule 54, costs are allowed as a matter of course to the prevailing party. In this post-trial...more
On a great many occasions, I’ve seen the two causes of action in the title, Unjust Enrichment and Quantum Meruit, spoken in the same breath, as if they are either one in the same or so closely related that they are...more
On February 15, 2023, the Oregon Court of Appeals ruled that an excavation subcontractor, plaintiff Kizer Excavating Co., ("Kizer") could not maintain a quantum meruit claim against a general contractor, defendant Stout...more
When two parties enter into a traditional written contract, they generally attempt to memorialize the transaction’s key terms in order to avoid misunderstandings about the expectations and responsibilities of the parties. In...more
Just like a bride and groom vow to join together for better or for worse, commercial parties joining together through a joint venture must make a similar promise to share in profits and losses. ...more
The Court of Appeals of Texas (“Court”) addressed in a December 16th Opinion an issue arising out of litigation between an engineering firm and a Texas city related to a contract associated with services to obtain a landfill...more
The US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit held that, under Texas law, a plaintiff can sustain an action for trade secret misappropriation even if the plaintiff voluntarily communicated the alleged trade secrets to the...more
a) On 9 October 2019, in the judgement of Mann v Paterson Constructions Pty Ltd [2019] HCA 32 (Mann), the High Court of Australia clarified the ability for contractors to claim on a quantum meruit basis....more
Rad and D’Aprile, Inc. v. Arnell Construction Corp, No. 502464/14, 2019 BL 131606 (NY. Sup. Ct. April 3, 2019) - In June of 2001, Arnell Construction Corp. (“Arnell”) entered into a prime contract to build two sanitation...more
Bass, Berry & Sims attorney Chris Lazarini discussed the case in which an investment bank sought to recover compensation from a client it had assisted in raising capital. The investment bank sued on claims of quantum meruit,...more
G4S Tech. LLC v. Mass. Tech. Park Corp., 2018 Mass. Lexis 357 (June 13, 2018) - A state development agency (the “Agency”), received state and federal funding to build a 1,200-mile fiber optic network. It contracted with...more
Aquatic Renovations Sys. v. Vill. of Walbridge, 2018 Ohio App. Lexis 1581 (April 13, 2018) On May 2, 2012, Aquatic Renovations Systems, Inc. (“Aquatic”) entered into a contract with the Village of Walbridge (“the Village”)...more
Ian Pai was an early participant in the Blue Man Group (“BMG”). Between 1989 and 1991, he met and began collaborating with the founders of BMG, namely, Chris Wink, Phillip Stanton and Matt Goldman. ...more
Frank “Knuckles” Walker, a musician and percussionist best known as a former member of the band The Roots, recently filed a lawsuit against his former band members and others. A copy of the complaint is available here....more
Archon Construction Co. v. U.S. Shelter, LLC, 2017 Ill. App. LEXIS 197 (March 31, 2017) - U.S. Shelter, LLC, a developer, undertook to develop a new residential subdivision in Elgin, Illinois. As part of that project,...more
The Supreme Court of Virginia recently issued an opinion applying the principles of res judicata to affirm the dismissal of a contract claim. In The Funny Guy, LLC v. Lecego, LLC, No. 160242 (Feb. 16, 2017), the plaintiff...more
Balfour Beatty Rail, Inc. v. The Kansas City Southern Railway Company, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 39086 (N.D. Tex., March 25, 2016) - The contractor contracted with owner to install 65 miles of railroad track, for a price of...more
Some may have thought that once waived, the right to arbitrate is gone forever. No so! The Eleventh Circuit decision in Collado v. J & G Transport, Inc., No. 15-14635 (11th Cir. April 21, 2016) is but the latest example. In...more
Part One — Vendors at the Gates - A. Introduction - As sub-$30 oil prices continue to place mounting pressure on struggling energy companies, we are seeing a steady uptick in claims by unpaid vendors and suppliers....more
Pennsylvania’s Home Improvement Consumer Protection Act (“HICPA”), which went into effect in 2009, generally requires that home improvement contracts be in writing and contain thirteen specific items (including the...more