Building Owner v. Contractor: Contractual Delay Justification Beyond Force Majeure

A building owner, having contracted for construction work to be completed by a specific date, sued the contractor for damages due to delay, arguing the contractor had failed to adhere to the agreed-upon schedule despite a clause in the contract allowing for an extension of time only in cases of *force majeure*. The court rejected the appeal, reasoning that the lower court correctly found that the contractual clause limiting extensions solely to *force majeure* did not preclude the contractor from invoking grounds for justification of delay that were inherent to the execution of the work or based on contractual terms other than the explicit *force majeure* provision, as long as the contractor established that the delay was not attributable to their fault.