In a press release issued in November 2002, the American Subcontractors Association (ASA) reported that it is becoming involved in a lawsuit in Tennessee regarding change orders for construction subcontractors.

ASA, headquartered in Alexandria, VA, joined with ASA Middle Tennessee and ASA of West Tennessee in filing a brief with the Tennessee Court of Appeals. The case — Amprite Electric vs. Tennessee Stadium Group — involves a subcontractor who was never paid for extra work outside the scope of the original contract, according to the release.

“The general contractor ordered the extra work, but refused to pay for it on the grounds that it had never provided the subcontractor with written change orders,” said the statement. “ASA believes that the general contractor ‘waived’ the requirement in the contract for written change orders.” A Tennessee anti-waiver statute provides in many cases that contractual terms cannot be waived unless they are waived in writing. ASA said the anti-waiver was never meant to apply to construction.

For more information, contact ASA at 703-684-3450 or www.asaonline.com.

Publication date: 12/09/2002