Case Study from Past Boileau Construction Dispute Mediation
Our mediation was called in to help resolve a small to medium-sized dispute between a homeowner and a construction company. They had signed a written contract for a kitchen and patio renovation. The work started and, after several months, it virtually finished other than some smaller disagreements about the door framing, and a hood for a high-end stove and kitchen installation.
The problem with the door was fixable locally but it did take almost a month to agree upon a price for a second door framing expert, which would be partially paid for by the original renovation construction company, and partially paid for by the homeowner client.
The problem with the stove hood was more complicated because the company that sold it was on the other side of the U.S. There was a three-hour difference in time zones, which made it awkward to schedule conversations. Locally, there was no company or worker who was certified to do this work, and the original worker who had flown there for the initial renovation and installation was no longer with the company. Thus, the dispute revolved around two issues: 1) who was going to fix the new hood installation and 2) who was going to pay for it.
Our mediation firm was able to find a certified worker who was doing a similar installation in a nearby city and who was able to add a stop on his way across the country. He fixed the problem in one day, and no money exchanged hands because the vendor company was able to absorb its cost through a contract it had with the install repair professional.
In this case, all parties were satisfied with the outcome, and everyone moved forward in a resolved way.