Verdicts / Settlements - Plaintiffs

Steeplechase HOA vs. Oxford-RCS Joint Venture, et al.

Facts

1980-1987: Defendants, CurreyRaich and Cabot, Cabot & Forbes were involved in developing several tracts of land in Calabasas, California. This work included rough grading of multiple tracts, including the development of 240 condominiums known as the Steeplechase project. Rough grading of the project was substantially completed in 6/85, with some additional rough grading performed in the northern section of the project which was completed in 3/87.

Thereafter, OxfordRCS Joint Venture, Lost HillsOxford Limited Partnership, Oxford Investment Corporation, Oxford Construction Services, Inc. and Oxford Development Enterprises, Inc., (collectively referred to as the "Oxford Defendants"), purchased the land for the project after all rough grading had been completed. The Oxford Defendants then constructed 240 condominiums on the project and began sales to the public in 1990. In 2/93, Steeplechase HOA filed a construction defect lawsuit against the Oxford Defendants, CurreyRaich and Cabot, Cabot & Forbes as the developers of the condominium project.

Plaintiff Claimed

that the entire project suffered from a litany of construction and design defects, including improperly installed roofs which did not comply with the project plans or the manufacturer's recommendations, leaking windows and sliding glass doors, structural defects including missing or improper shear walls, hold downs, undersized and overspaced nails used in shear walls and firewalls and missing firestopping material between the party walls. In addition, Plaintiff claimed that the thirtytwo buildings at the project suffered from soil subsidence.

Prior to the Northridge earthquake, Plaintiff claimed that the buildings lacked structural integrity to withstand reasonably foreseeable earthquake activity. During the Northridge earthquake on 1/17/94 while the case was pending, four buildings including 29 units suffered severe damage forcing the City of Calabasas Building Department to "red tag" those units and other units were "yellow tagged" by the City. Also, during the earthquake as much as four inches of further settlement occurred to buildings' compressible alluvium which was never removed during the rough grading process. Total subsidence to buildings constructed improperly compacted fill soil range from approximately 3 to 7 inches. Following the Northridge earthquake, the City of Calabasas Building Department performed their own destructive testing on all thirtytwo buildings at the project and concluded that in almost every instance, there were missing shear walls, hold downs and other structural connections.

Defendant Argued

that they were not responsible for the geotechnical problems because they purchased the property after rough grading had been completed by the previous developers, Cabot, Cabot & Forbes and CurreyRaich. The Oxford Defendants argued that they were only responsible for certain defects to the structures themselves, which were disputed in scope and frequency. Oxford believed that the total value of the soils and nonsoils problems was approximately $7,000,000.

Insurance Company

Travelers and Scottsdale for Oxford

After 1-1/2 years of mediation before both Judge Jerrold Oliver, Retired (JAMS) and finally with Professor Linda Meyer of Pepperdine University School of Law, a partial settlement was negotiated between the Plaintiff and the Oxford Defendants for $4,300,000. This settlement includes payment by the Oxford Defendants and eighteen of Oxford's subcontractors which participated in the nonsoils construction of the condominium units and buildings. Plaintiff agreed to settle the nonsoils issued with the Oxford Defendants and release the remaining developers defendants, CurreyRaich and Cabot, Cabot & Forbes, from all nonsoils issues. Following the Court's approval of the Plaintiff's partial settlement with the Oxford Defendant on 8/9/95, CurreyRaich settled with the Plaintiff for an additional $1,000,000.

Plaintiff continues to pursue the soilsrelated claims in the case against the remaining developer defendant, Cabot, Cabot & Forbes. Plaintiff's damages for the soilsrelated issues that remain in the case against Cabot, Cabot & Forbes exceeds $6,000,000.

TriService Reference No. S951101