More details to this question:
We decided to use Tim Stoneman (Image tree service) to cut down the trees on our property, level the ground and fill and reseed once he was done. We told him (in text messages) that we wanted a contract before anything was cut. We gave him the time to show up so we could sign the contract, and he didn't show in time so we had to go to work. He came by later that day when he was told no one would be home, and decided to cut down some of the trees without the contract having been signed. I came home to find the brush laid everywhere in the backyard and was furious (what if a tree hit the house?)! I didn't want to do business with him, and I don't feel I should have to pay him for work that he did without the contract. He's threatening to file litigation against us if we don't pay. Does he have a winning case, should we settle with him on a price, or could we win the case?
1 ANSWER
If he did the work improperly< there is a chance you could win and not have to pay anything, or at least may be able to deduct any damages the shoddy workmanship caused from the value of the services provided. If, however, the work was done properly and your objection is solely to the highhanded way he went about things, you would probably owe him the fair value of the work (what isknown as quantum meruit), which may well be lower than what would have been the contract price, but would be what a court determines is a fair price for the services provided to you and benefit ocnferred on you.
Answered on Jun 13th, 2019 at 10:43 AM