PHILADELPHIA – Defense counsel for a Media contractor believes the Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas is not the correct venue for a negligence and breach of contract case.
William A. Galinas filed a motion for preliminary objections on July 13, claiming since the subject incident occurred in Landsdowne in Delaware County, the case should be heard in the Delaware County Court of Common Pleas – in addition to the defendants not being based or conducting any business in Philadelphia County.
A hearing in this matter was set for Wednesday at Philadelphia City Hall, in Court chambers.
In April 2014, plaintiff Karen Conway of Landsdowne retained John Page of Jackson, N.J., and Old Middletown Builders of Media to remodel her kitchen. According to the suit, the parties arrived at an arrangement which includes dates for completion of the work and payment.
Conway made a down-payment of $3,736 towards the remodeling work, but claimed Page demanded a check be made to him personally, instead of Old Middletown Builders as stipulated in the agreement.
Conway further claimed Page “intimidated and bullied” her about additional payments not listed in the contract. Conway alleges Page accused her of changing the project specifications and threatened her with legal action.
The plaintiff said she attempted to work with Page as long as possible, and paid him about $12,000 during that period. In July 2014, the suit says Conway decided she could no longer accede to Page’s non-contractual demands and severed the business relationship at that time.
In August 2014, Conway hired another contractor, whose opinion was Page’s work was “defective” and of sub-standard quality. The new contractor estimated it would cost an additional $15,000 to reconstruct Conway’s kitchen.
Conway believes Page knowingly underbid the project and performed deficient work, which resulted in the plaintiff being left without a kitchen and running water. Conway filed suit against Page for negligence, fraud, breach of contract/warranty/fiduciary duty/covenant of good faith and fair dealing, violating the Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law (UTPCPL), negligent misrepresentation and fraudulent misrepresentation.
The plaintiff is seeking a sum jointly and severally, in excess of $50,000, plus compensatory and punitive damages, attorney’s fees, costs and other relief.
The plaintiff is represented by Matthew B. Weisberg of Weisberg Law, in Morton.
The defendant is represented by William A. Galinas in Drexel Hill.
Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas case 150402089
From the Pennsylvania Record: Reach Courts Reporter Nicholas Malfitano at nickpennrecord@gmail.com