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O’Connor says CUC should honor ‘oral’ contract
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Posted on Oct 13 1999
Lawyer Robert O’Connor has asked the Superior Court to deny the Commonwealth Utilities Corp.’s motion for summary judgment against his civil lawsuit, maintaining that the agency is bound to honor an “oral contract” between him and a CUC employee.
The case stemmed from CUC’s installation of a power pole on the property on Mt. Tapochau being leased by O’Connor.
O’Connor, who is represented by lawyer Joseph Horey, reminded CUC that when the poles were being installed in 1996, its employee Robert Malate had agreed to move the line of power poles away from his property.
In his lawsuit, O’Connor said CUC had reneged on its promise to relocate the power line installation.
CUC, on the other hand, said O’ Connor’s lawsuit should be dismissed saying his contract with Malate, “being oral is unenforceable under the Statue of Fraud.”
On behalf of O’Connor, Horey filed an opposition to CUC’s motion for summary judgment, saying that “there is no law or policy prohibiting CUC from doing what it had agreed to do.”
Horey said there was nothing in the law which states that a promise may only be “enforceable if done in writing.”
“There is nothing in the Statute of Frauds which states that a promise to move power poles or to perform any similar services must be in writing,” the motion stated.
Horey also opposed CUC’s argument that O’Connor did not comply with the terms under CUC Electric Service regulations, which require customers to fill up application forms for electric service.
Such regulations, according to Horey, do not apply in O’Connor’s case as he was not seeking electric service.
Horey reminded CUC that O’Connor only sought the relocation of the power lines that would hook-up electric service to a customer residing in the area. (MCM)
