Opinion ID: 2387357
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Evidence of Sustaining or Ascertaining Damage

Text: Skidmore claims that BMA was aware that there were problems with the marble cladding system long before it filed suit against Skidmore. It claims that the evidence was such to place a reasonably prudent person on notice of a potentially actionable injury. What Skidmore overlooks, however, is that the problems that BMA encountered with the marble in the 1960s and the 1970s were not problems associated with the negligent design and installation of the marble cladding system. There was evidence to support the trial court finding that the pre-1981 repairs were not of the kind and degree that would put BMA on notice that the system as a whole was defective. It was not until 1985, when the panels began to fall from the building, that it became apparent that there were major flaws with design and installation. In the 1960s, BMA performed repairs to the marble panels. Mr. Hicklin stated that he found chips of marble on the gallery deck that surrounded each floor and repaired the panels with epoxy or grout. The chips were from the column marble pieces, not the horizontal pieces, and almost always occurred at the bottoms of columns. He could not determine whether any of the panels were warped and did not see any moon-shaped cracks at the anchor locations. At least one marble panel was replaced. The trial court found that there was no persuasive evidence as to why it was replaced. Mark Crew testified that the chipping problems with the marble were remedied when expansion joints were cut in the aluminum caps. He did not witness any further problems with the marble after the joints were expanded in 1968 and after the building was recaulked in 1975. Mr. Crew testified that he had not witnessed any chipped, warped or protruding panels and that he was not told about any of these conditions. He testified that six replacement panels had been purchased because of the difficulty in matching the marble in future years, not, as suggested by Mr. Hicklin's testimony, because of fear that the panels would fall from the building. We defer to the trial court in its determination on these issues of fact and witness credibility. Aviation Supply, 868 S.W.2d at 120.