Cooch and Taylor attorneys Christopher Lee and Blake Bennett obtained a $180,000 jury verdict on Thursday, October 6, 2016 after four days of trial on behalf of four homeowners who brought suit against their builder for negligent construction.
Plaintiffs Christopher Dolfi, Sarah Christensen, John and Ann Yahraes and Jack and Donnamarie Weaver all began noticing leaks in their townhomes in the Villas at West Shore community in Smyrna, Delaware between 2011 and 2013. Cooch and Taylor filed a complaint on their behalves alleging negligent construction, breach of contract, breach of express warranties, breach of implied warranties and violation of the Delaware Consumer Fraud Act claims against the builder and subcontractors of their homes on December 5, 2013. The case was litigated for over two and a half years and all but the builder, Anderson Homes LLC, settled with the Plaintiffs. The case against the builder went to trial on October 3, 2016. After four days of trial, the jury took only an hour to find that the builder failed to ensure the homes were built to the proper standards of workmanship and awarded the Plaintiffs the full amount of their damages.
The Plaintiffs are relieved to obtain the verdict and feel justified in their decisions to pursue these claims against those they trusted to build their homes properly.
This is the third successful trial result for Chris Lee and Blake Bennett in as many years.