Newhall Land Settles Lawsuit

The Los Angeles Daily News reports today that Newhall Land has settled a lawsuit brought by homeowners of the Franciscan Hill condominium complex. The suit began in 1994 and stemmed from what homeowners describe as substandard construction of the homes in the complex. A total of 31 of the 71 units had to be bulldozed and completely rebuilt.
The 1994 Northridge quake destroyed many parts of San Fernando Valley and ravaged communities within Santa Clarita.
This suit has been an on going battle, pitting homeowners against the largest area home builder. The suit began in 1996 with the homeowners along with the HOA insurer, State Farm Fire and casualty Co. Going up against Newhall Land, stating construction defects were to blame for the extreme damage winning the suit in 2000 with compensation of $8.5 million, however the suit went to a jury trial and in December 2005 the plaintiffs were awarded $1.3 million. [Somewhere the other $3 million disappeared from this equation]
The community homeowners had been suprised that it has taken this long to settle however at this time they are happy that it is finally over.