SPANCRETE, INC., APPELLANT,
v.
RONALD E. FRAZIER & ASSOCIATES, P.A., APPELLEE

Fla. 3d DCA | 1994-01-18
No. 92-1470
Before BASKIN, COPE and GERSTEN, JJ., BASKIN, J., concurs.
630 So. 2d 1197 Florida District Court of Appeal, Third District (1994) Caution
Cited by 9 cases

AI-generated. These summaries, headnotes, and key points are machine-generated and may contain errors or omissions. Always verify against the full opinion text below. Not legal advice.

Synopsis

Spancrete, a subcontractor on a construction project, sued architect Ronald E. Frazier & Associates for negligent supervision. The Florida Supreme Court's recent decision in Casa Clara confined the supervising architect duty of care recognized in A.R. Moyer strictly to its facts, which extended only to general contractors. Because Spancrete was a subcontractor, not a general contractor, it had no viable cause of action against the architect.


Holding

A subcontractor has no cause of action against a supervising architect for negligent supervision. The Florida Supreme Court's recent limitation of A.R. Moyer strictly to its facts confined the recognized duty of care to general contractors only, and that duty does not extend to subcontractors. Spancrete's alternative argument under Restatement section 552 likewise lacks merit.


Headnotes

[1] A supervising architect's duty of care, as recognized in A.R. …

[2] The power to stop work is a critical factor in determining whether an architect qualifies as a supervising architect under A.R. …

Previewing 2 of 4 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.

Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence

Key Quotes

“We ... limit A.R. Moyer, Inc. v. Graham, 285 So.2d 397 (Fla.1973), strictly to its facts.”

The Florida Supreme Court's restrictive approach to the A.R. Moyer precedent, limiting it to its specific facts rather than extending it broadly to other parties.

Previewing 1 of 3 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.

Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence

Facts & Procedural History

Spancrete was a subcontractor on a Miami Dade Community College construction project where Frazier served as consultant architect. Spancrete alleged t…

The full statement of facts, procedural history, and disposition for this case are member content.

Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence

© FLexlaw, Inc. — AI-generated enrichments are proprietary. All rights reserved.


Opinion of the Court
COPE, Judge.

COPE, Judge.

Spancrete, Inc., appeals the dismissal with prejudice of its fourth amended complaint against the appellee architects, Ronald E. Frazier & Associates, P.A. We affirm.

Spancrete was a subcontractor on a construction project for Miami Dade Community College. Frazier was consultant architect. Spancrete brought suit against Frazier, alleging that Frazier was a supervising architect and that Spancrete had been injured by Frazier’s alleged negligent supervision.

During the pendency of this appeal, the Florida Supreme Court decided Casa Clara Condominium Association, Inc. v. Charley Toppino & Sons, Inc., 620 So. 2d 1244 (Fla.1993). There the court said, “We ... limit A.R. Moyer, Inc. v. Graham, 285 So. 2d 397 (Fla.1973), strictly to its facts.” Id. at 1248 n. 9 (citing AFM Corp. v. Southern Bell Tel. & Tel. Co., 515 So. 2d 180 (Fla.1987); Sandarac Ass’n, Inc. v. W.R. Frizzell Architects, Inc., 609 So. 2d 1349 (Fla. 2d DCA 1992), review denied, 626 So. 2d 207 (Fla.1993); E.C. Goldman, Inc. v. A/R/C Associates, Inc., 543 So. 2d 1268 (Fla. 5th DCA), review denied, 551 So. 2d 461 (Fla.1989)). A.R. Moyer is the leading case governing the liability of a supervising architect. Assuming arguendo that Frazier is a supervising architect within the meaning of A.R. Moyer

*

Spancrete has no cause of action. A.R. Moyer recognizes a duty of care owed by a supervising architect to a general contractor. 285 So. 2d at 398, 402. Span-crete in this case is a subcontractor. Because A.R. Moyer has been confined strictly to its facts, the duty of care there recognized does not extend to a subcontractor. See McElvy, Jennewein, Stefany, Howard, Inc. v. Arlington Elec., Inc., 582 So. 2d 47,49 (Fla. 2d DCA), cause dismissed, 587 So. 2d 1327 (Fla.1991).

We find no merit to Spancrete’s alternative argument under Restatement (Second) of Torts section 552 (1977).

We need not reach Frazier’s alternative arguments for affirmance.

Affirmed.

BASKIN, J., concurs.

*

A.i?. Moyer emphasized the fact that the supervising architect had the power to stop work. 285 So. 2d at 400-02. The present contract is American Institute of Architects Document A201, "General Conditions of the Contract for Construction,” 1976 edition. Under that contract, the architect does not have the right to stop work; that power is reserved to the owner. 1 National Institute of Construction Law, Inc., Construction & Design Law % 4.6c.2d (1991). Although the architect has the power to reject work and has other contract administration powers, the architect does not have the right to control or supervise the contractor and subcontractors. See generally id. §§ 4.6c.2c-4.6c.2d. Given that A.R. Moyer is to be confined strictly to its facts, it would appear that Frazier does not qualify as a supervising architect within the meaning of A.R. Moyer.

Concurrence
GERSTEN, Judge

GERSTEN, Judge

(specially concurring).

I agree with the majority’s result based upon the following analysis. In its fourth amended complaint, Spancrete, Inc., a subcontractor, sought recovery from Frazier, an architect, on a negligence theory for economic losses resulting from change orders in the construction project. The complaint alleged that Frazier was .the supervising architect on the project.

Since the supreme court’s decision in Casa Clara Condominium Ass’n, Inc. v. Charley Toppino & Sons, Inc., 620 So. 2d 1244 (Fla.1993), a narrow exception to the economic loss rule remains in effect for supervising architects who are not in privity of contract. In A.R. Moyer, Inc. v. Graham, 285 So. 2d 397, 402 (Fla.1973), the court held that a general contractor had a cause of action for the alleged negligent supervisory performance by an architect. In Moyer, the contractor was neither a party to the contract with the architect, nor an intended third party beneficiary of the architect’s contract. The decision was based on the fact that the supervisory responsibilities vested in the architect carried with it a concurrent duty not to “injure foreseeable parties who were not beneficiaries of the contract. See AFM Corp. v. Southern Bell Tel. & Tel. Co., 515 So. 2d 180, 181 (Fla.1987). However, the court in Casa Clara limited Moyer strictly to its facts. Casa Clara, 620 So. 2d at 1248 n. 3.

Moreover, in McElvy, Jennewein, Stefany, Howard, Inc. v. Arlington Elec., Inc., 582 So. 2d 47 (Fla. 2d DCA), cause dismissed, 587 So. 2d 1327 (Fla.1991), the court refused to extend Moyer to a nonsupervising architect sued by a subcontractor. Here, as in Arlington Elec., Inc., the subcontractor, not the general contractor or the owner, sued the architect. In this ease, the trial court properly dismissed the ease with prejudice because the economic loss rule does not recognize a protected interest in purely economic loss unaccompanied by personal injury or property damage. Casa Clara; see also Sandarac Ass’n, Inc. v. W.R. Frizzell Architects, Inc., 609 So. 2d 1349 (Fla. 2d DCA 1992) (condo associations do not have remedy in negligence against general contractors and architects for economic losses arising from defective construction), review denied, 626 So. 2d 207 (Fla.1993).

As explained in Casa Clara, “[i]f a house [or service rendered] causes economic disappointment by not meeting a purchaser’s expectations, the resulting failure to receive the benefit of the bargain is a core concern of contract, not tort, law.” 620 So. 2d at 1247. Here, although the subcontractor alleged that the parties had at least an oral contract, it did not allege a breach of contract theory as a separate count in the complaint. How ever, even if the subcontractor had alleged a separate count for breach of contract, under a contract theory, the subcontractor failed to specifically plead the terms of the contract.

As an action progresses, the privilege of amendment decreases to the point that the trial judge does not abuse its discretion in dismissing with prejudice. Kohn v. City of Miami Beach, 611 So. 2d 538, 539 (Fla. 3d DCA 1992). While there is no magical number of amendments which are permitted, a dismissal with prejudice after the third attempt is not an abuse of discretion. Id.

Because the subcontractor failed to state a cause of action under both tort and contract theories after his fourth amended complaint, the trial court properly dismissed the complaint with prejudice and, therefore, I would affirm.


Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus


Citator

Cited By

  • Palau Int'l Traders, Inc. v. Narcam Aircraft, Inc., 653 So. 2d 412 (Fla. 3d DCA 1995)
    …oss rule, the court strictly limited the holding in Moyer to its unique facts. Casa Clara Condominium Ass’n v. Charley Toppino & Sons, Inc., 620 So. 2d 1244, 1248 n. 9 (Fla.1993). [*416] See also Spancrete, Inc. v. Ronald E. Frazier & Assocs., P. A, 630 So. 2d 1197 (Fla.3d DCA 1994) (duty of care owed by supervisory contractor to general contractor in Moyer does not extend to subcontractor). In Casa Clara, the court stated that the economic loss rule limits plaintiffs seeking to recover purely economic losses,…
  • D.I.C. Commercial Constr. Corp. v. Broward Cnty., 668 So. 2d 697 (Fla. 4th DCA 1996)
    …the work and had done so. [*699] The contract between the architect and owner does not appear to be a standard American Institute of Architects contract. Accordingly, the dicta in the footnote in Spcmcrete, Inc. v. Ronald E. Frazier & Assoc,s, P.A, 630 So. 2d 1197 (Fla. 3d DCA 1994), relied on by the architect, is not persuasive. Nor is it possible to compare the provisions of the contract in the present case with the contract in Moyer, because the Moyer court did not have the architect’s contract with the ow…
  • Trafalgar Condo. Ass'n, Inc. v. Waletha Dev. Corp., 661 So. 2d 136 (Fla. 4th DCA 1995)
    …ss’n v. Charley Toppino and Sons, Inc., 620 So. 2d 1244 (Fla.1993); Sandarac Ass’n v. W.R. Frizzell Architects, Inc., 609 So. 2d 1349 (Fla. 2d DCA 1992), rev. denied, 626 So. 2d 207 (Fla.1993); Spancrete, Inc. v. Ronald E. Frazier & Associates, P.A, 630 So. 2d 1197 (Fla. 3d DCA 1994). STONE and FARMER, JJ., and STREITFELD, JEFFREY, Associates Judge, concur.…

Previewing 3 of 5 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.

Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence

Authorities Cited

Full citator, related cases, and AI research tools

Open in FLexlaw