contract price, contestable?

[fvella]

What is the name of your state?What is the name of your state?Pennsylvania

We are going to arbitration with our building contractor over several major issues, including not fulfilling the contract, theft of material, shoddy workmanship and so on. In getting estimates for finishing the job, after he walked out leaving us with a house only half-built and 80% of the funds gone, and extrapolating backwards to what the whole house should have cost us, we also concluded the the contract price was quite inflated to begin with (we were new to the state, and we had not gotten other bids). I'm not talking dollar and cents, but rather tens of thousands. My question is, can we also contest the contract price and ask for reimbusement of overcharges, if we can't account for the extra money given to him under some other category of damages. I haven't gotten a clear-enough answer from our lawyer about this, thus my question here. I expected the arbitrator to be a professional in the field, well-versed, for example, with local building costs, etc, able to independently put a $$ value on this case, who would quickly realize the other than honorable intentions of this guy from the getgo. The lawyer thinks it possible we could get an arbitrator from outside of the industry, which will throw us into a "he says, they say" scenario, which I was hoping a third party pro could spare us. So my question is important, in that without including this general overcharge to present to the arbitrator, part of the macro picture will never be addressed.

Thanks,

fvella

 

[HomeGuru]

What is the name of your state?What is the name of your state?Pennsylvania

We are going to arbitration with our building contractor over several major issues, including not fulfilling the contract, theft of material, shoddy workmanship and so on. In getting estimates for finishing the job, after he walked out leaving us with a house only half-built and 80% of the funds gone, and extrapolating backwards to what the whole house should have cost us,
**A: ok.
*****

we also concluded the the contract price was quite inflated to begin with (we were new to the state, and we had not gotten other bids).

**A: none of which is the builder's fault.
*******


I'm not talking dollar and cents, but rather tens of thousands. My question is, can we also contest the contract price and ask for reimbusement of overcharges, if we can't account for the extra money given to him under some other category of damages.

**A: yes, you can but the terms and conditions in the contract will prevail.
*********
I haven't gotten a clear-enough answer from our lawyer about this,

**A: well why not, ask again and again until you get a clear response. You are paying this attorney correct?
*******
thus my question here. I expected the arbitrator to be a professional in the field, well-versed, for example, with local building costs, etc, able to independently put a $$ value on this case, who would quickly realize the other than honorable intentions of this guy from the getgo. The lawyer thinks it possible we could get an arbitrator from outside of the industry, which will throw us into a "he says, they say" scenario, which I was hoping a third party pro could spare us.

**A: what? What kind of lawyer do you have? A dufus? In arbitration, you use an arbitrator that is in the industry.
******
So my question is important, in that without including this general overcharge to present to the arbitrator, part of the macro picture will never be addressed.

Thanks,

fvella

**A: I think you have to address your poor legal counsel issue too.

 

[fvella]

contract price, contestable

Thanks for the answer, and yes, the lawyer is being paid, handsomely too.
If I understood you, you basically said the contract price prevails regardless of the fact that it was excessive.

fv

 

[HomeGuru]

Thanks for the answer, and yes, the lawyer is being paid, handsomely too.
If I understood you, you basically said the contract price prevails regardless of the fact that it was excessive.

fv

**A: yes..........

 

[fvella]

thank you for the clarification.
fv

 

[HomeGuru]

No problem and good luck to you.