{"id":899149,"date":"2021-09-16T16:38:10","date_gmt":"2021-09-16T22:38:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/?p=899149"},"modified":"2021-09-16T16:38:14","modified_gmt":"2021-09-16T22:38:14","slug":"forum-selection-enforcemen","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/forum-selection-enforcemen\/","title":{"rendered":"When is Forum Selection in a Construction Contract Enforceable?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Christopher G. Hill | <a href=\"https:\/\/constructionlawva.com\/when-is-forum-selection-in-a-construction-contract-enforceable\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Construction Law Musings<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If there is one mantra that is repeated often here at\u00a0Construction Law Musings, it is that your\u00a0construction contract will be strictly construed\u00a0and Virginia Courts will enforce the provisions as written.\u00a0 This rule includes forum selection clauses.\u00a0 For those that aren\u2019t attorneys, this means that absent a statute to the contrary, the parties can pick the location of any litigation or arbitration by contract.\u00a0 However, the timing of signing that contract makes a difference as a relatively recent Eastern District of Virginia case points out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Marathon Res. Mgmt Grp v. C. Cornell, Inc.\u00a0<\/em>examined what happens when work is performed by one party to the contract prior to the execution of the written contract that contains the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/forum-selection-provision-insurance\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">forum selection provision<\/a>.\u00a0 In this case, the defendant C. Cornell, Inc. obtained a default judgment in Texas for non-payment by Marathon for painting and cleaning of rooms at Texas A &amp; M University for work invoiced on August 22, 2017, and September 11, 2017.\u00a0 Upon receipt of the garnishment from the Texas Court, Marathon sued C. Cornell in Virginia state court and the defendant removed the case to federal court.\u00a0 Marathon alleged two separate breaches of contract, the first was that C. Cornell violated the forum selection clause of a Master Services Agreement (\u201cMSA\u201d) executed on September 23, 2017.\u00a0 The second was a violation of another clause of the MSA that barred direct communication with any of Marathon\u2019s customers.\u00a0 The second breach was alleged to be by virtue of the garnishment summons to one of Marathon\u2019s customers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In response, C. Cornell filed a motion to dismiss the Complaint and argued that the MSA was not applicable to the invoices and work performed prior to its execution and that therefore the forum selection clause did not apply.&nbsp; The Court agreed, concluding that the MSA was only applicable to future work and not the work performed prior to its execution.&nbsp; The Court summarized its reasoning as follows:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p>The plain language of the MSA unambiguously demonstrates that the Parties did not intend its terms to cover past work or contractual dealings between them. Marathon relies heavily on the language of the MSA to support its claim that Certa Pro breached the MSA\u2019s forum selection clause when it filed the Texas Lawsuit to collect on the Painting and Cleaning Contracts. But a plain reading of the contractual terms shows that the MSA applies only to future work. The Court rests this finding on three observations. First, the MSA\u2019s repeated use of the word \u201cshall\u201d (and not the past tense \u201cshall have\u201d) demonstrates the Parties\u2019 intention for the MSA to apply to future work. Second, the Court observes that the MSA, although it explicitly incorporated other outside documents, did not incorporate the then extant Painting and Cleaning Contracts, leading to the reasonable inference that the MSA did not supersede or alter the Painting and Cleaning Contracts. Third, the wording and structure of the insurance provision in the MSA also evinces the Parties\u2019 intention that the MSA apply to future, not past, work.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>Because the terms of the MSA did not apply to past work, neither the non-communication nor the forum selection clause applied to the work underlying the Texas judgment so the Court dismissed the Complaint.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This is yet another case that shows that timing can be key.&nbsp; The Court showed it was ready, willing, and able to enforce these provisions had the language of the MSA been different.&nbsp; However, it could not apply the advantageous clauses retroactively because other provisions of the MSA precluded such an application.&nbsp; The Court did what Virginia courts always do and enforced the terms of the contract as written.&nbsp; So, in this case, the answer to the title of this post is after the applicable written contract is executed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Cases such as this one that turn on small variations in language emphasize the need to obtain the counsel of an\u00a0experienced construction attorney\u00a0when drafting your construction contracts and determining what actions to take once those contracts are in place.\u00a0 As always I both encourage you to read the case for yourself and let me know if you have other insights from it in the comments.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Christopher G. Hill | Construction Law Musings If there is one mantra that is repeated often here at\u00a0Construction Law Musings, it is that your\u00a0construction contract will be strictly construed\u00a0and Virginia Courts will enforce the provisions as written.\u00a0 This rule includes forum selection clauses.\u00a0 For those that aren\u2019t attorneys, this means that absent a statute to&hellip; <a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/forum-selection-enforcemen\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">When is Forum Selection in a Construction Contract Enforceable?<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[9],"tags":[9895,224,476],"class_list":["post-899149","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-construction-contracts","tag-advise-consult","tag-construction-contract","tag-forum-selection-clause","entry"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.0 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>When is Forum Selection in a Construction Contract Enforceable? 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