Wood Elec., Inc. v. Ohio Facilities Constr. Comm'n
90 N.E.3d 371
| Ohio Ct. App. | 2017Background
- Dalton Local School District project managed by OFCC involved prime contractors: CT Taylor (general trades/brick/roof), Wood Electric (electrical), and Scaparotti Construction Group (SCG) as construction manager.
- Contract defined "temporary" and "permanent" enclosure; enclosure delays by CT Taylor affected multiple building areas and late or incomplete enclosure persisted through winter 2013–2014 and beyond baseline milestones.
- Wood notified OFCC of delay-related impacts (Dec 20, 2013), sought extensions to certify a claim, certified a claim April 11, 2014 for $207,467.57 (reserved right to supplement), and later sought higher damages at administrative appeal and in court.
- Project team (SCG, architect, OFCC) disputed Wood’s enclosure dates and claim; OFCC denied the claim relying in part on SCG/architect letters that used a looser enclosure definition.
- At trial, Wood’s expert (Calvey) used a measured-mile productivity analysis plus HOOP home-office overhead to calculate $254,027 in damages; OFCC’s expert criticized methodology but offered no competing damage computation.
- Court of Claims found OFCC breached by failing to enforce milestone deadlines, credited Calvey’s methods as reasonably certain, and entered judgment for $254,027; appellate court affirmed.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Applicability of Complete Gen./Eichleay prima facie requirements to HOOP damages | Wood: HOOP (ODOT) method is permissible; Complete Gen.'s Eichleay "standby" elements are tied to Eichleay, not mandatory for HOOP | OFCC: Complete Gen. requires proof of "standby" and inability to take other work before home-office overhead recovery | Court: Affirmed that Complete Gen. (Eichleay) prima facie rules are not mandatory for HOOP; trial court did not err applying HOOP per precedent (J&H relied upon) |
| Whether plaintiff was limited to the certified claim amount when suing in Court of Claims | Wood: Certification occurred while delays were ongoing and OFCC denied extension; it reserved rights to supplement and later-proof full damages | OFCC: Plaintiff should be limited to the statutorily certified amount and cannot recover more in Court of Claims | Court: Rejected OFCC; permitting supplementation was equitable given OFCC denied extensions and project not complete when certified; not absurd to allow fuller proof of damages |
| Whether the trial court improperly shifted burden of proof to OFCC | Wood: Presented expert proof of damages; OFCC criticized methodology but offered no alternative computation | OFCC: Court forced OFCC to disprove plaintiff’s damages after rejecting its challenges | Court: No improper burden shift—court weighed evidence, found Calvey credible and OFCC offered no alternative damages figure, so judgment for Wood proper |
Key Cases Cited
- Complete Gen. Constr. Co. v. Ohio Dept. of Transp., 94 Ohio St.3d 54 (2002) (addresses Eichleay formula and prima facie elements for home-office overhead recovery)
- West v. All State Boiler, Inc., 146 F.3d 1368 (Fed. Cir. 1998) (federal articulation of Eichleay steps and standards for unabsorbed home-office overhead)
- Arbino v. Johnson & Johnson, 116 Ohio St.3d 468 (2007) (standard that factfinder must award damages supported by evidence with reasonable certainty)