Sudbury construction company, Ontario government embroiled in $20M lawsuit over Hwy. 69 widening
A Sudbury construction company is suing the Ontario government, arguing the contract it signed to expand part of Highway 69 incorrectly estimated the amount of rock that would be leftover at the end of the project.
The $20 million suit centres on whether the province incorrectly estimated the amount of rock, as Bot Construction claims, or whether the excess rock is a result of the way it was blasted, as the Ontario government claims.
Lawyers for the company argue the excess rock is a result of a design error, as well as errors estimating the extent to which crushed and broken rock takes up more volume than rock sitting in the bank.
Bot argues that its bid for the work was much lower than it should have been because of the errors. It said the amount of rock it had to deal with was "approximately 26 times more than was estimated."
"The plaintiffs’ position is that this case is fundamentally about whether two pieces of information provided by the defendant to bidders on the contract were incorrect and if so, was the price the plaintiffs’ bid for the contract artificially deflated by its reliance on that incorrect information," said a court transcript of the latest hearing on the case, released May 31.
In response, lawyers from the province said Bot is responsible for the excess rock because "of the way it conducted the work on the project."
"The defendant asserts that the source of the additional rock is the drilling and blasting techniques employed by the plaintiffs and its subcontractors," the transcript said.
"Specifically, one source of additional rock would be over-blasting by the plaintiffs: blasting beyond the design lines of the contract, also referred to as 'overbreak.' While over-blasting is permitted, disposal of any additional rock generated by over-blasting would be the responsibility of the plaintiffs."
The province argued that Bot should have to provide extensive documentation on their blasting techniques to determine whether that was the cause of the excess rock.
But Bot argued their case is based on arguments the information provided the province in the contract was incorrect, leading the company to bid too low. Specific blasting techniques, they argue, aren't relevant.
While largely finding for Bot, the judge in the case said the company had to say whether an expert report they had prepared would allow them to answer how much they would have bid on the contract at the time, if the alleged design errors had not been made.
"If the report did provide them with sufficient information/data to answer how they would have bid but for the design error, they must also answer that question," the judge ruled.
"If they do not have the data/ information to respond, they are not required to do so, because that would impose an undue burden of work."
Read the full transcript here.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
CFIA monitoring for avian flu in Canadian dairy cattle after U.S. discoveries
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency is encouraging veterinarians to keep an eye out for signs of avian influenza in dairy cattle following recent discoveries of cases of the disease in U.S. cow herds.
Mandisa, Grammy award-winning 'American Idol' alum, dead at 47
Soulful gospel artist Mandisa, a Grammy-winning singer who got her start as a contestant on 'American Idol' in 2006, has died, according to a statement on her verified social media. She was 47.
Senators reject field trip to African Lion Safari amid elephant bill study
The Senate legal affairs committee has rejected a motion calling for members to take a $50,000 field trip to the African Lion Safari in southern Ontario to see the zoo's elephant exhibit.
DEVELOPING G7 warns of new sanctions against Iran as world reacts to apparent Israeli drone attack
Group of Seven foreign ministers warned of new sanctions against Iran on Friday for its drone and missile attack on Israel, and urged both sides to avoid an escalation of the conflict.
'It could be catastrophic': Woman says natural supplement contained hidden painkiller drug
A Manitoba woman thought she found a miracle natural supplement, but said a hidden ingredient wreaked havoc on her health.
After hearing thousands of last words, this hospital chaplain has advice for the living
Hospital chaplain J.S. Park opens up about death, grief and hearing thousands of last words, and shares his advice for the living.
Vancouver firefighter in rehab at home after losing leg to flesh-eating infection overseas
A family trip took a frightening turn for Christopher Won when he was diagnosed with flesh-eating disease while in Hong Kong and now, after weeks of treatment overseas, the Vancouver firefighter is back home recovering.
WATCH Video shows dramatic police takedown of carjacking suspects chased through parking lot north of Toronto
Police have released video footage of a dramatic takedown of a group of teens wanted in connection with an attempted carjacking in Markham earlier this month.
WHO likely to issue wider alert on contaminated cough syrup
The World Health Organization is likely to issue a wider warning about contaminated Johnson and Johnson-made children's cough syrup found in Nigeria last week, it said in an email.