A trial court had granted the defendant insurance company’s motion for summary judgment dismissing the complaint. The plaintiff had asserted a surety claim. The plaintiff appealed.

The salient issue on appeal was whether a failure to comply with the terms of a performance bond precluded the plaintiff’s claims for damages. The performance bond was written on a form known as “AIA Document A312” (bond). The Appellate Division, First Dep’t (court) noted that the bond, published by the American Institute of Architects, “has been described as ‘one of the clearest, most definitive, and widely used type of traditional common law “performance bonds” in private construction….’”