DEMETRIOS SOFIAS, Plaintiff and Appellant, v. BANK OF AMERICA, Defendant and Respondent, 172 Cal. App. 3d 583

Summary

Appellant contractor appealed from a judgment on the pleadings in favor of respondent lender in his underlying construction dispute. Appellant claimed to be a third party beneficiary to the construction loan agreement between respondent and property owner. Thus, when the bank refused to pay appellant out of the construction loan fund for work he allegedly completed, he claimed the bank breached its duty to him as a third party beneficiary. The court reversed the judgment and remanded, concluding that appellant was not a third party beneficiary under California Mechanics' Lien Law, Cal. Civ. Proc. Code § 3264, because the construction loan agreement stated no other party would have any right or action on the agreement, and that rights could not be assigned without respondent's written consent. Thus, no benefit directly flowed to appellant by virtue of the contract and his ability to undertake the construction project because property owner obtained funds to pay him. Appellant was merely...