CONSTRUCTION CONTRACTING & MANAGEMENT, INC., Plaintiff-Appellee, v. RON McCONNELL and DON PATTISON, Defendants-Appellants, 112 N.M. 371

Summary

The court agreed with the landowners that the trial court erred in refusing to direct a verdict on the issue of liability because the contract was clear and unambiguous and was breached by the contractor. The court found that the trial court erred in not informing the jury that summary judgment had been granted on the issue of liability and in submitting instructions that reinforced the erroneous impression that the jury was to determine if a breach had occurred. The court rejected the landowners' claimed error from the trial court's refusal to submit the issue of punitive damages to the jury because there was no evidence of a culpable mental state to support such an award. The court held that the trial court erred in admitting certain impeachment testimony because the proper foundation was not laid. The court also found error from not instructing the jury that the landowners were entitled to liquidated delay damages from the date the construction was supposed to have begun through the...