Construction Defect Lawsuit Settles for $39.5 million

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Lawsuit over defects in condos resolved

By Berny Morson And Accola, Rocky Mountain News

July 29, 2005

D.R. Horton, the Texas-based home-building titan, has paid a record $39.5

million settlement to resolve a defective-construction lawsuit brought by condo

owners in a Superior subdivision.

The 2003 Boulder District Court suit, filed by the homeowners association of

The Summit at Rock Creek, alleged cracked foundations, mold, water damage and

roof problems.

Attorney Sullan, whose Greenwood Village firm Vanatta Sullan Sandgrund

represented the homeowners, said the payout is the largest-ever residential

defective- construction settlement in Colorado.

" It's nice for (plaintiffs) to be at this stage of the game where they can

devote their attention to repairs, " Sullan said.

" It was a hotly contested case that went on for a couple of years, with a

full year of very intense discovery being done by both sides. "

Attorneys for Horton could not be reached Thursday.

The case was settled May 31 but not made public until an article this week in

the Superior Observer.

Sullan said the settlement does not specify when the repairs will be

completed. Horton's settlement check, issued June 1, went to the Summit

Homeowners

Association, which will contract for the work, Sullan said.

The subdivision's 43-building complex consists of 246 condominiums built

between 1999 and 2002.

Lawsuits still remain between Horton and its contractors.

The homeowners' complaint cited buildings constructed on bentonite, a soil

that expands and cracks foundations, and drainage problems that, in some homes,

rotted floor joists.

" Basically, from the bottom up there were construction issues with the

project, " Sullan said.

" Yes, it's a lot of money, but the good thing is the homeowners are in a

position to make meaningful repairs and get this project to where it was

supposed to be in the first place. "