Legal Question in Construction Law in California

Subject: Latentconstruction flaw

I have a question regarding a construction flaw on my home.

My home was built in1973 at which time the builder made a mistake and constructed 2 rooms without a "step down " as specified.

The builder not wanting to change it offered to build another home on another lot which I refused. The builder then offered $1500 per room to leave them as built.

I then agreed if the compensation was $3000 per room which he refused. He then told me that they found a way of retrofitting a step down floor and so I accepted that solution.

37 years latter I found out it is now a problem as the 2 floors are separating from the adjacent rooms because they are unstable. The discovery came this late because both rooms were carpeted and the flaw was not visible 'til now.

The question is - Do I have any recourse for this late but latent design flaw problem? The builder is still in business.

Regards,

Ben Tsuchimoto

Santa Clara, CA


Asked on 2/14/11, 11:22 am

2 Answers from Attorneys
Gary Redenbacher Redenbacher & Brown, LLP

You're trying to hold someone responsible for a construction issue that may or may not have occurred 37 years ago??? You're way, way out of luck. The statute of limitations for latent defects is 10 years and the exceptions to this law are extremely limited.

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Answered on 2/14/11, 11:54 am

Actually there are no exceptions to the ten year limit unless there is a separate action for fraud that induced you to miss the deadline.

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Answered on 3/10/11, 11:27 am


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