Recently, the developers of the Trump SoHo, a luxury hotel in Manhattan, have filed a lawsuit against the building’s interior design firm, the Rockwell Group.
The developers, Bayrock/Sapir claim that the design firm did not meet building codes with its work, and, as a result, the former group had to pay $1.5 million in damages and delays to fix the errors.
Specifically, Bayrock/Sapir claims the bathtubs were too small, hangers did not fit inside closets and the main passenger elevators did not have sufficient lighting, in addition to other defects.
The developers claim the Rockwell Group failed to pay for any of the alleged defects, however, the design firm stated that it had entered a 35-month contract with Bayrock/Sapir, which ended in February 2009. Thus, they refused to pay the invoice that appeared after the contract’s end date.
The Rockwell Group also expressed that it did reduce its payment for its work overall, and then began charging $20,000 a month for work in place of the previously agreed upon hourly rate. The firm worked for 16 more months, totaling $320,000 in charges that Bayrock/Sapir has yet to pay.
The Trump Soho has been notorious for its legal cases recently. In addition to this lawsuit, it is also facing litigation for allegedly misrepresenting sales at the property to potential buyers.