Do I have a case against a fence contractor for shoddy work?

[dcoleman1061]

We're in Louisiana. In August, my in-laws hired a small company to build a 6 ft. wooden privacy fence in their back yard. The section in question is about 40 feet long. It was built and on Wednesday, December 26, about 25 feet of the fence fell down after a heavy rain. The support poles didn't break. They just fell over. At that time, we found that the support poles were buried only 1 foot in the ground with a collar of cement around the top 2 or so inches of the support pole at ground level. The pole was 8 ft. tall, according to the contractor, but he cut them down to about 5 feet tall so they were below the height of the fence panels which were 6 feet tall.
We called and met with the contractor on Friday, December 28. At that time he met with myself and my brother in law in the back yard about the fence. He informed us that he didn’t feel he was responsible and wouldn’t repair the fence for free. He said he would charge us $400 to fix it. We haven't had the repairs made yet but will do that as soon as we can get some estimates.
We have pictures and documentation showing they paid him to build it. Do we have grounds to take him to small claims court? If so, what can we sue him for and can I, his son in law, bring the case and represent my father in law in court?

 

[xylene]

Did your contract (the written document, not the words of the contractor) specify the length of the posts and the depth and design of the post holes and footings?

But, yes. This is shoddy work.

 

[Zigner]

Additionally - no, you cannot represent your father-in-law in court.

 

[not2cleverRed]

*YOU* don't have a case. Your in-laws, however, do sound like they have grounds for a case.

A few years ago, I read about building fences. The general rule cited in the book was that 1/3 of the support post should be underground. Other sources would seem to indicate that this is a generally accepted formula.

The support posts did not have to be cut at all.

 

[NeilTheCop]

Depending where you are in Louisiana many cities and counties require that you get a permit before constructing a fence.
This is the one from Baton Rouge as an example.
https://www.brla.gov/DocumentCenter/View/3611/Fence-Permit-Information-Sheet-PDF
It would seem that in Baton Rouge only a licensed contractor or the owner may put up a fence and as such I believe they would have to comply with building codes on foundation depth.

 

[dcoleman1061]

Let me clarify a couple of things. The fence was a replacement for a another fence that was damaged in a tornado. So it wasn't new. There was no specification written on the contract on how deep to dig the holes for the support poles. But yes, digging the hole 1/3 the height of the pole, deep for setting it is pretty standard. And filling the hole completely with cement is as well.
Mother in law passed away in November and their 2 daughters, my wife and sister in law, have power of attorney over the finances of my father in law. He's not senile or incapacitated and is capable but he wouldn't bring a suit like this and be able to stand up in court and actually argue his case. So, are you guys saying unless he does this, it can't get done?

 

[not2cleverRed]

Let me clarify a couple of things. The fence was a replacement for a another fence that was damaged in a tornado. So it wasn't new. There was no specification written on the contract on how deep to dig the holes for the support poles. But yes, digging the hole 1/3 the height of the pole, deep for setting it is pretty standard. And filling the hole completely with cement is as well.
Mother in law passed away in November and their 2 daughters, my wife and sister in law, have power of attorney over the finances of my father in law. He's not senile or incapacitated and is capable but he wouldn't bring a suit like this and be able to stand up in court and actually argue his case. So, are you guys saying unless he does this, it can't get done?

Who signed the contract?

 

[Zigner]

Let me clarify a couple of things. The fence was a replacement for a another fence that was damaged in a tornado. So it wasn't new. There was no specification written on the contract on how deep to dig the holes for the support poles. But yes, digging the hole 1/3 the height of the pole, deep for setting it is pretty standard. And filling the hole completely with cement is as well.
Mother in law passed away in November and their 2 daughters, my wife and sister in law, have power of attorney over the finances of my father in law. He's not senile or incapacitated and is capable but he wouldn't bring a suit like this and be able to stand up in court and actually argue his case. So, are you guys saying unless he does this, it can't get done?

A power of attorney does not allow the attorney in fact to represent the grantor in court.
Edit: Unless the attorney in fact is also an attorney (ie: lawyer)

 

[dcoleman1061]

Who signed the contract?

Mother in law. She passed away a few months ago.

 

[not2cleverRed]

Mother in law. She passed away a few months ago.

Ah... Well that makes it interesting. Who is the executor of the estate?

 

[dcoleman1061]

Ah... Well that makes it interesting. Who is the executor of the estate?

Mother in laws employer that she retired from last year, an attorney.

 

[LdiJ]

Mother in laws employer that she retired from last year, an attorney.

Ah, that gets even more interesting. An attorney could certainly exert some pressure on the contractor to make good on the fence contract...and would have some responsibility to do so as the executor of her estate.

 

[dcoleman1061]

Mother in laws employer that she retired from last year, an attorney.

 

[dcoleman1061]

Ah, that gets even more interesting. An attorney could certainly exert some pressure on the contractor to make good on the fence contract...and would have some responsibility to do so as the executor of her estate.

ecxellant point and I just sent an email off to my sister in law about that before I read your post. I think that's the only recourse we have. After that I start posting on FB pictures and talking about the quality of work this guy does. Once he fixes it, I shut up and take the posts down. I'll shame him into fixing it.

 

[not2cleverRed]

ecxellant point and I just sent an email off to my sister in law about that before I read your post. I think that's the only recourse we have. After that I start posting on FB pictures and talking about the quality of work this guy does. Once he fixes it, I shut up and take the posts down. I'll shame him into fixing it.

I think, at this point, it's a bad idea to do that.