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Vacaville Quail Run v. Gable Plastics1/30/2002
NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN OFFICIAL REPORTS
California Rules of Court, rule 977(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or ordered published, except as specified by rule 977(b). This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 977.
Gable Plastics, Inc., a manufacturer of acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS) drain, waste and vent plumbing pipe, appeals from a judgment following a court trial in an action for damages caused by defective ABS plumbing pipe in the Vacaville Quail Run (VQR) apartment complex. Gable argues that VQR failed to produce quantitative evidence of damage caused to property (other than Gable's product) that would permit tort damages. It also challenges several allocations of settlement amounts. We determine that VQR produced evidence of numerous instances of substantial property damage and reject Gable's contention. We find that the trial court erred in its allocations of credit for prior settlements and remand for reconsideration of those amounts.
BACKGROUND
VQR, a limited partnership, purchased the 296-unit Quail Run apartment complex in late 1990. William McNulty had been the managing partner of the complex since October of 1990. ABS pipe was used in the construction of the apartments to carry raw sewage and associated gases to the outside of the buildings. When VQR first purchased the building, McNulty observed occasional breaks in the ABS pipe. Typically, a resident would notice either a smell, failure of the wallboard, discoloration of tiles, or collapsing cupboards due to water leakage. McNulty would investigate and find a leaking pipe inside the wall or ceiling. The leak was usually caused by a cracking around the pipe joint. Repair involved cutting open the wall or ceiling, or removing a cupboard or toilet, to access the pipe. At first VQR management would remove the defective portion of the pipe and use a temporary "Fernco" device to reconnect the pipe, then reseal the wall, retape it, and complete the ancillary repairs to the unit.
As time passed, McNulty noted that the severity of the associated property damage from the leaks was increasing. Because the pipes had been leaking undetected for longer periods of time, McNulty began finding moldy and rotted insulation, studs and support boards at the base of the walls. Residents could smell sewage in the walls. When management replaced sections of discolored linoleum, it soon became discolored again. McNulty's observations of the years of piecemeal repairs raised health concerns in his mind when he observed the presence of raw sewage in the apartment walls. He instructed his maintenance staff to eliminate all contaminated insulation and other materials when performing pipe repairs. In the nine years that McNulty had been VQR's managing partner, he knew of breaks in virtually all of the 37 residential buildings and in almost every apartment. When McNulty met an attorney who specialized in construction defect litigation, he learned that defective ABS pipe might be the cause of the VQR problems.
In November of 1995, VQR filed a second amended complaint for property damage against a number of defendants including: 700 Market Associates, the prior owner of the apartments; Stoddard Construction, the general contractor; Converse Plumbing, a subcontractor; pipe manufacturers Polaris Pipe Co., Inc., Centaur Mfg., Inc., Gable Plastics, and others; Plastic Processing, Inc., the plastic resin supplier; and the International Association of Plumbing and Mechanical Officials (IAPMO), an organization that tests and approves plumbing products. The complaint alleged causes of actio
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