The City of Woodstock mistakenly made a duplicate payment to D & H Construction Company for construction work performed for the City. When D & H Construction refused to return the duplicate payment, the City filed suit for unjust enrichment, conversion, attorney fees under OCGA § 13-6-11, and punitive damages. The trial court subsequently denied summary judgment to D & H Construction and granted summary judgment to the City on its claims for unjust enrichment, conversion, and attorney fees. D & H Construction appeals, contending that the voluntary payment doctrine bars the City’s unjust enrichment and conversion claims. D & H Construction also contends that the grant of attorney fees was erroneous because, among other things, there was a bona fide controversy and it was not given an opportunity to cross-examine the City’s counsel concerning the reasonableness of the fees. For the following reasons, we affirm the trial court’s grant of summary judgment to the City on the unjust enrichment and conversion claims and its ruling that the City was entitled to attorney fees. However, because D & H Construction was not permitted to cross-examine the City’s counsel about the reasonableness of the requested fee amount, we vacate the award of fees and remand for an evidentiary hearing on that limited issue. To prevail on a motion for summary judgment, the moving party must demonstrate that there is no genuine issue of material fact, and that the undisputed facts, viewed in a light most favorable to the party opposing the motion, warrant judgment as a matter of law. OCGA § 9-11-56 c; Lau’s Corp. v. Haskins , 261 Ga. 491 405 SE2d 474 1991. In reviewing the grant or denial of summary judgment, we apply a de novo standard of review. Citations and punctuation omitted. Greer v. Provident Bank , 282 Ga. App. 566, 566-567 639 SE2d 377 2006. So viewed, the undisputed record reflects that the City engaged D & H Construction to perform work on a construction project in Cherokee County. On March 6, 2002, after completing the construction work, the vice president of D & H Construction executed a sworn document entitled “Contractor’s Certificate and Release of Liens” the “Contractor’s Certificate”. The Contractor’s Certificate stated that D & H Construction was only owed the final payment amount of $100,049.10 from the City for its work on the project. The Contractor’s Certificate further provided that upon receipt of that final payment, D & H Construction would release the City “from any and all claims arising under or by virtue of” the construction contract between the parties.
On March 19, 2002, the City tendered the amount of $100,049.10 to D & H Construction via check number 46430. D & H Construction deposited the check into its bank account. However, on April 17, 2002, the City mistakenly tendered a duplicate final payment of $100,049.10 to D & H Construction via check number 46793. D & H Construction deposited the duplicate payment and used it to pay off outstanding company debts. Five months later, the City realized that it had inadvertently tendered a duplicate final payment to D & H Construction and demanded return of the payment. D & H Construction refused to return the duplicate payment, resulting in the City commencing the instant litigation for unjust enrichment, conversion, attorney fees, and punitive damages.
