He Said, He Said
November 8, 2012The court affirmed a judgment in favor of a hauling company on its breach of contract claim against subcontractors on a city construction project. The parties disputed whether a contract was formed to haul dirt and concrete debris from the project for $40 an hour or for $40 a load, and both presented competing evidence and witnesses that testified to their contended contractual rate. After a bench trial, the trial court found that Mejia offered to use his trucks and drivers to haul dirt and concrete debris from the project on behalf of appellants for $40 an hour, that Mejia communicated that offer to De Los Santos, and that De Los Santos accepted the offer. It then rendered judgment in favor of Mejia for $11,794 plus attorney’s fees.
On appeal, Appellants challenged the legal sufficiency of the evidence supporting the trial court’s judgment, and the central challenge was to the evidence supporting the finding that the parties formed a contract at the hourly rate. Appellants also argued that the conflict in the evidence about whether they would pay $40 a load or $40 an hour made the contract ambiguous. The court held that the dispute did not present an issue of contract ambiguity but instead an issue of fact about the actual terms of the contract. Because the evidence was sufficient to support both $40 a load and $40 an hour, the resolution of the conflict turned on the credibility and demeanor of the witnesses – a finding that an appellate court will not disturb.
