Twin Falls Clinic & Hospital Bldg. Corp. v. Hamill

• Decision Date: 27 April 1982
• Docket Number: No. 13546,13546
• Citation: 644 P.2d 341,103 Idaho 19
• Parties: TWIN FALLS CLINIC & HOSPITAL BUILDING CORPORATION, an Idaho corporation, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. Robert L. HAMILL, Jr., Defendant-Respondent.
• Court: Idaho Supreme Court

Page 341

644 P.2d 341

103 Idaho 19

TWIN FALLS CLINIC & HOSPITAL BUILDING CORPORATION, an Idaho corporation, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. Robert L. HAMILL, Jr., Defendant-Respondent.

No. 13546.

Supreme Court of Idaho.

April 27, 1982.

Thomas L. Stephan of Stephan, Slavin, Eaton & Stephan, Twin Falls, for plaintiff-appellant.

John P. Howard and Nickolas J. Dibert of Quane, Smith, Howard & Hull, Boise, for defendant-respondent.

SHEPARD, Justice.

This is an appeal from a summary judgment in favor of defendant Hamill in an action alleging breach of contract and architectural malpractice by Hamill. Summary judgment was granted on the basis that the action was barred by the statute of limitations. We affirm in part and reverse in part.

In 1966 plaintiff-appellant Twin Falls Clinic & Hospital Building Corporation, contracted with defendant-respondent Hamill, an architect, to design and supervise the construction of a second story addition to the Clinic's then existing structure. The construction was completed and the addition occupied by December 1, 1969. Difficulties arose almost immediately. Defective window sill flashing allowed rain to seep into the building, a design flaw in the ventilation system resulted in problems in the basement, and the portion of the new addition overhanging a drive-up entrance was designed with inadequate vehicle clearance. Other defects were discovered from 1970 to 1978. It is alleged that the most serious problems resulted from Hamill's failure to adequately provide for expansion and contraction of the building and failure to supervise the securing of the masonry to the structure itself. In 1970 a portion of the brickwork began to separate from structural members and Hamill was called to examine the problem. He suggested that the problem resulted from normal expansion, was of no importance and that calking and plastering would solve the problem. These directions were followed, but in subsequent years the separation reappeared. The problems re-occurred and the Clinic ultimately contracted for the dismantling and rebuilding of the brickwork during 1976 and 1977.

The Clinic filed this action against Hamill on August 30, 1978, on the basis of breach of contract and professional malpractice. It is to be noted that the Clinic did not allege fraudulent concealment. On motion therefor the trial court granted summary judgment in favor of Hamill. The trial court held that the contractual cause of action was barred five years after completion of the work, I.C. §§ 5-241, 5-216, 5-201, the tort cause of action was barred eight years after completion of the work, I.C. §§ 5-241, 5-219, 5-201, and since the action was instituted nearly eight years and nine months after completion of the work, the entire cause of action was barred by the statutes of limitation.

The Clinic asserted below and here that Hamill's conduct after the construction was completed constituted grounds for estoppel which should bar Hamill from asserting the defense of the statutes of limitation. The trial court held that I.C. § 5-219 precludes the application of estoppel against Hamill. The Clinic asserted that I.C. § 5-241, which prescribes the time at which certain causes of action are deemed to accrue, violated the constitution, but the trial court held against the Clinic and further refused to engraft a discovery exemption upon the statute.

We turn first to the Clinic's assertions regarding estoppel. I.C. § 5-219 provides in pertinent part:

"Within two (2) years ... 4. An action to recover damages for professional malpractice ... provided, however, when the action is for damages arising out of the placement and inadvertent, accidental or unintentional leaving of any foreign object in the body of any person by reason of the professional malpractice of any hospital, physician or other person or institution practicing any of the healing arts or when the fact of damage has, for the purpose of escaping responsibility therefor, been fraudulently and knowingly concealed from the injured party by an alleged wrongdoer standing at the time of the wrongful act, neglect or breach in a professional or commercial relationship with the injured party, the same shall be deemed to accrue when the injured party knows or in the exercise of reasonable care should have been put on inquiry regarding the condition or matter complained of; but in all other actions, whether arising from professional malpractice or otherwise, the cause of action shall be deemed to have accrued as of the time of the occurrence, act or omission complained of, and the limitation period shall not be extended by reason of any continuing consequences or damages resulting therefrom or any continuing professional or commercial relationship between the injured party and the alleged wrongdoer ...."

We find no intent, either explicit or implicit, in the language of I.C. § 5-219 to eliminate the doctrine of equitable estoppel in professional malpractice actions. Estoppel is a long accepted portion of Anglo-American jurisprudence. See 3 W. Blackstone, Commentary on the Laws of England 307 (21st Ed. 1844); E. Coke, Institutes of the Laws of England § 667 (16th Ed. 1812). In one of this Court's early decisions, Fremont County v. Warner, 7 Idaho 367, 370, 63 P. 106, 107 (1900), it was stated that estoppel as a principle is "so well established * * * that it needs no citation of authority to support it." Since estoppel is found in the common law, statutory changes therein are not presumed but must be shown by a clear intent to alter or oppose the common law or repeal it by necessary implication. Industrial Indemnity Co. v. Columbia Basin Steel & Iron, Inc., 93 Idaho 719, 471 P.2d 574 (1970); Hancock v. Halliday, 65 Idaho 645, 150 P.2d 137 (1944); Sprouse v. MaGee, 46 Idaho 622, 269 P. 993 (1928); School Dist. No. 351, Oneida Co. v. Oneida Education Assn., 98 Idaho 486, 567 P.2d 830 (1977); Valdez v. State, 83 N.M. 720, 497 P.2d 231 (1972), cert. denied 409 U.S. 1077, 93 S.Ct. 694, 34 L.Ed.2d 666 (1973); Griffith v. Raven Red Ash Coal Co., 179 Va. 790, 20 S.E.2d 530 (1942).

We find no expression of clear intent to repeal the doctrine of estoppel in the language of I.C. § 5-219. Although its language indicates that the statute of limitations is not to be extended by a continuing relationship, such does not indicate any clear intent to abolish the doctrine of estoppel. Estoppel does not depend solely upon the existence of a continuing relationship and estoppel does not "extend" a statute of limitations, but rather prevents a party from pleading and utilizing the statute of limitations as a bar, although the time limit of the statute of limitations may have run. We also note that I.C. § 5-219(4) has been characterized as a legislative response to this Court's decision of Renner v. Edwards, 93 Idaho 836, 475 P.2d 530 (1970). Estoppel was not an element in Renner and not discussed therein; hence, we deem it highly improbable that our legislature intended to impact the doctrine of estoppel in the passage of the statute designed to respond to a decision of this Court having nothing to do with estoppel. We do not address the additional question of whether our legislature has the power to eliminate the doctrine of estoppel from the tools of this Court See Johnson v. Neel, 123 Colo. 377, 229 P.2d 939 (1951).

Although this Court has never passed upon the question of whether a party can be estopped from pleading a statute of limitations, such has been well established in other jurisdictions, and we have been cited to no authority to the contrary. See Glus v. Brooklyn Eastern Dist. Terminal, 359 U.S. 231, 79 S.Ct. 760, 3 L.Ed.2d 770 (1959); Groseth v. Ness, 421 P.2d 624 (Alaska 1966); Klamm Shell v. Berg, 165 Colo. 540, 441 P.2d 10 (1968); Lyden v. Goldberg, 260 Or. 301, 490 P.2d 181 (1971); Gould v. Bird & Sons, Inc., 5 Wash.App. 59, 485 P.2d 458 (1971).

Since this matter is before this Court on appeal from an order granting summary judgment, all facts and inferences are to be construed most favorably toward the party against whom judgment is sought. LaChance v. Ross Machine & Mill Supply, Inc., 102 Idaho 505, 633 P.2d 570 (1981); Smith v. Boise Kenworth Sales, Inc., 102 Idaho 63, 625 P.2d 417 (1981). Construing the facts here we are unable to hold that as a matter of law Hamill's actions do not give rise to an estoppel.

The elements of equitable estoppel are, (1) a false representation or concealment of a material fact with actual or constructive knowledge of the truth, (2) the party asserting estoppel did not know or could not discover the truth, (3) the false representation or concealment was made with the intent that it be relied upon and (4) the person to whom the representation was made or from whom the facts were concealed, relied and acted upon the representation or concealment to his prejudice. Tommerup v. Albertson's Inc., 101 Idaho 1, 607 P.2d 1055 (1980); Idaho Title Co. v. American States Insurance Co., 96 Idaho 465, 531 P.2d 227 (1975); Bjornstad v. Perry, 92 Idaho 402, 443 P.2d 999 (1968).

It is alleged that Hamill on several occasions stated that separation and cracking in the mortar was due to normal expansion and contraction and should be of no concern, when in reality the problems were caused by Hamill's failure to provide proper expansion protection. Hamill, as the architect who designed and supervised the construction of the building, is subject to the inference that he had actual or constructive knowledge of the failure to provide the necessary expansion protection and the Clinic having no architectural expertise, cannot be held to be required to have discovered the absence of the expansion protection. It can further be reasonably inferred that Hamill's representations were intended to be relied upon and that the Clinic did in fact rely upon those representations when it followed the remedial measures suggested by Hamill. Hamill asserts that two statements by...