Level One Contact Inc v. BJL Enters. LLC

The trial court erred in failing to reduce the amount of attorneys' fees awarded against appellants under OCGA § 13-1-11, which limits the amount of attorneys' fees that can be awarded in actions involving contracts, including leases.

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This contract case involves a commercial lease agreement. In April 2005, Samuel Winters, the owner of Level One Contact, Inc., contracted with Paul Green to rent a large manufacturing facility. Green spent over $180,000 toward specialized tenant improvements, and Winters, on behalf of Level One, signed a 7-year lease. The lease began in August 2005 with initial monthly payments of $5,250.00 and called for progressive payments until June 2012, with concluding monthly payments of $6,573.00. After seven months, Green sold the property to John Lunsford by virtue of a warranty deed that transferred all rights and privileges. Lunsford thereafter transferred title to the property to his family business, BJL Enterprises, LLC, by virtue of a similar warranty deed transferring all rights to the property. Winters, on behalf of Level One, paid the rent each and every month. However, after operating the business for approximately two years, Winters sold substantially all business assets to North Star Chemicals, Inc. On September 4, 2007, Level One notified Lunsford that it was vacating the property and terminating the lease. Level One subsequently stopped paying rent.

In January of 2008, BJL Enterprises filed suit against Level One and Winters for the unpaid rent due on the lease, fraudulent conveyances, stubborn litigiousness, bad faith, and punitive damages. Level One and Winters counterclaimed for failure to return their security deposit pursuant to the lease, conversion, trespass to property, attorney fees, and punitive damages. A jury found in favor of BJL Enterprises and against Level One in the amount of $103,954.00 in past due rent, $67,734.00 in attorney fees and expenses of litigation pursuant to the lease, and $1.00 for attorney fees for stubborn litigiousness and bad faith. The jury found in favor of BJL Enterprises and against Winters for fraudulent conveyance in the amount of $103,954.00, and $1.00 for attorney fees for stubborn litigiousness and bad faith.

Level One Contact Inc v. BJL Enters. LLC

The trial court erred in failing to reduce the amount of attorneys' fees awarded against appellants under OCGA § 13-1-11, which limits the amount of attorneys' fees that can be awarded in actions involving contracts, including leases.

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