This is a question of liability involving an LLC.
I hired a licensed land surveyor to survey a small waterfront property I own, as the first step in getting a building permit. It took 2 yrs. & was very costly, but I finally got my building permit; it was soon rescinded, as the high water mark (very BASIC in waterfront surveying!) was belatedly found to be inaccurate. Since the high water mark on the survey was wrong, my house design could not be used on my lot, & the various expensive reviews,etc., were invalid & needed to be redone on the basis of corrected survey info. The cost to me was an extra $45,000. (This did not include the $5000 cost of the bad survey; the surveyor eventually re-surveyed the lot at no additional charge. Nor does the $5,000 reflect the continued rent that I am forced to pay, when I should have been living in my new house. Nor does it include the cost of the mental, emotional & physical stress I suffered due to this very worrying, expensive situation, entirely the result of the inaccurate survey.)
In my original agreement with the surveyor, his liability due to alleged negligence is limited to the cost of the contract ($5000.) However, in my opinion, his survey did not meet reasonable performance standards, & cost me an unnecessary $45,000 for redone permit work, etc., & months of lost time & continued stress while I tried to get this mess straightened out with the permit dept. Despite his LLC status, can the surveyor's liability limit in the contract be overturned so I can collect more equitable damages?
I hired a licensed land surveyor to survey a small waterfront property I own, as the first step in getting a building permit. It took 2 yrs. & was very costly, but I finally got my building permit; it was soon rescinded, as the high water mark (very BASIC in waterfront surveying!) was belatedly found to be inaccurate. Since the high water mark on the survey was wrong, my house design could not be used on my lot, & the various expensive reviews,etc., were invalid & needed to be redone on the basis of corrected survey info. The cost to me was an extra $45,000. (This did not include the $5000 cost of the bad survey; the surveyor eventually re-surveyed the lot at no additional charge. Nor does the $5,000 reflect the continued rent that I am forced to pay, when I should have been living in my new house. Nor does it include the cost of the mental, emotional & physical stress I suffered due to this very worrying, expensive situation, entirely the result of the inaccurate survey.)
In my original agreement with the surveyor, his liability due to alleged negligence is limited to the cost of the contract ($5000.) However, in my opinion, his survey did not meet reasonable performance standards, & cost me an unnecessary $45,000 for redone permit work, etc., & months of lost time & continued stress while I tried to get this mess straightened out with the permit dept. Despite his LLC status, can the surveyor's liability limit in the contract be overturned so I can collect more equitable damages?
