City of Gillette v. Hladky Construction, Inc.
2008 Wyo. LEXIS 139 (November 14, 2008)
The Supreme Court of Wyoming upheld an award to a Contractor of more than one million dollars against an Owner for a breach of an implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing even though the Owner did not breach the contract’s express terms.
The City of Gillette (“City”) hired Hladky Construction, Inc. (“HCI”) for the remodel and expansion of City Hall. The project specifications called for the installation of precast concrete exterior panels that matched those on the existing structure. Further, there was a requirement that the plant at which the precast panels were to be manufactured be certified under the Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute Plant Certificate Program prior to the start of their production. HCI submitted a bid that unknown to it named an precast manufacturer which had not yet received the required certification. Both the City hired architect and structural engineer were aware prior to bid acceptance that HCI’s precast manufacturer was in the process of obtaining certification, but was not yet certified. Despite knowing that HCI’s manufacturer was not certified and a contract provision requiring the architect to notify bidders of any bid objections, no City representative objected or informed HCI about its uncertified precast manufacturer.