8 Mar 2023
Finn Way General Contractor Inc. v. Superior Masonry Ltd.
In the case of Finn Way General Contractor Inc. v. Superior Masonry Ltd. dated March 8, 2023, the plaintiff Finn Way General Contractor Inc. ("Finn Way") had filed a lawsuit against the defendant Superior Masonry (Thunder Bay) Ltd. ("Superior") for breach of contract, seeking damages. The case was decided in favor of Finn Way as explained below.
Finn Way, a general contractor, had submitted a bid for a school construction project in Atikokan. Superior, which bid to provide masonry services, had contested the bid amount: $1,478,800 (Superior) versus $1,398,800 (Finn Way). The situation had been complicated by an error in Superior's estimation of the required materials, which had led them to withdraw their bid after the tender had closed.
Mr. Gazzola, the principal of Superior, had sought assistance from Mr. Karimi, Finn Way's project manager. An employee of Finn Way, Jay Monsma, had assisted in estimating materials, and Mr. Gazzola had compensated him for his work. The bid had been emailed to Finn Way on October 20, 2020.
The court had ruled in favor of Finn Way, concluding that there was no evidence of an agreed reduction in Superior's bid. The breach of contract had been attributed to Superior, who had withdrawn due to their mistake. Finn Way had been awarded damages of $106,200 plus HST and an 8% markup, along with $5,000 in mitigation costs. Finn Way's costs had been awarded, subject to any offers made during the case.