Environmental Energy Partners Inc. v. Siemens Building Technologies

Environmental Energy Partners Inc. v. Siemens Building Technologies,Inc., et al.
Nos. 26521 & 26702, 2005 Mo. App. LEXIS 1568 (Mo. Ct. App., Oct. 25, 2005)
In Environmental Energy Partners Inc. v. Siemens Building Technologies, Inc., et al., Nos. 26521 & 26702, 2005 Mo. App. LEXIS 1568, a payment dispute arose between a contractor and its subcontractor on a hospital renovation project. When the contractor refused to pay the subcontractor the remaining subcontract balance ($201,178.75) on the basis that the subcontractor’s work was not completed, the subcontractor filed a mechanic’s lien against the property. The subcontractor then filed a petition to enforce its lien, naming the contractor and owner as defendants. Because of the subcontractor’s lien, the owner withheld the last installment payment of $148,475 due to the contractor under their agreement. Thereafter, and unbeknownst to the contractor, the subcontractor and the owner entered into a confidential “Settlement Agreement and Release” under which the owner agreed to pay directly to the subcontractor the $148,475 amount that it was withholding from the general contractor in exchange for a release of the lien upon entry of judgment in the litigation.
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