Alabama Supreme Court Confirms WWHGD’s Complete Victory on City of Huntsville’s Claims

The Supreme Court of Alabama rejected the City of Huntsville’s (“City”) applications for new hearings in a suit against Weinberg Wheeler Hudgins Gunn & Dial, LLC’s client Dawson Building Contractors (“Dawson”) for the allegedly botched construction of the Huntsville-Madison County Jail. Attorneys Dave Dial and Nick Panayotopoulos defended Dawson in claims related to cost overruns that exceeded $50 million.

Defects were discovered mid-construction and the Public Building Authority (“PBA”) elected to terminate Dawson for its convenience while reserving its "right" to pursue damages against Dawson for defective construction. The City alleged that Dawson botched the construction of the jail while Dawson maintained that the problems were a result of the City’s poor design. The Supreme Court of Alabama initially determined that in spite of the City’s reservation to pursue damages, Dawson had no obligation to pay damages, even if its construction was defective as the City claimed. The Supreme Court of Alabama ruled that all claims against Dawson are extinguished. The City applied for a new hearing. The Supreme Court of Alabama resoundly rejected the City’s applications and issued a judgment for Dawson on the PBA’s claims.

Dawson still intends to recover the millions of dollars owed to it for work performed, plus the interest that has been accumulating since 2006 when Dawson’s contract was terminated.