Court of Appeals of New York

In a breach-of-contract action brought by a school district against the surety that issued a performance bond for a contractor working on a school project: 1) summary judgment against the surety is affirmed, where it breached the performance bond by refusing to complete the project, and performance was not excused by the school district's alleged illegal diversion of trust funds to the DOL in satisfaction of a debt owed by the contractor on a previously performed public work project; and 2) the school district's request for attorney's fees is denied, given the lack of unmistakably clear language in the bond indicating an intent to provide for an award of attorney's fees incurred in litigation arising out of the surety's failure to perform.

Appellate Information

• Decided 04/03/2012
• Published 04/03/2012

Judges

• Ciparick

Court

• Court of Appeals of New York

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• Neil B. Connelly, Andrea Tersigni