Legal Question in Construction Law in California

Re: How to get out of kitchen remodel contract

It is always dicey to walk away from a contract. Although the law says that a material breach by one party to a contract excuses performance by the other party, who is to say what is "material?" Unfortunately, that word is defined on a case by case basis by either a judge or a jury. You might try having your lawyer send an "anticipatory repudiation" letter. This type of letter is basically a put up or shut up letter. If the party won't give you reasonable assurance of performance then you have the right to walk away. But, then again, what is "reasonable assurance?"

By the way, I don't view the failure to identify bearing walls as particularly onerous. Although consumers seem to have some kind of fascination (even fear) with bearing walls, contractors don't attach much special significance to them. There are techniques for handling load bearing walls, and, at least in residential construction, these techniques are neither complicated nor time consuming. In other words, replacing a load bearing wall with the right sized header isn't usually very expensive, at least when compared to a complete kitchen remodel. If, however, the wall turns out to be a shear wall, that's another matter entirely. But, if there is sheetrock on both sides of the wall it is almost certainly not a shear wall. Ask your engineer for more details.