Opinion ID: 1451378
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Subcontractor's Award

Text: Wild West claims that the district court erred when it held that the arbitrators did not exceed their authority by awarding gbs&h Architects $99,532.72 on behalf of Jorgensen Engineering. We agree. Jorgensen Engineering performed engineering services without having a written contract. The letter which gbs&h Architects sent to Jorgensen Engineering in August 1989 did not contain an arbitration clause and was not signed by either Jorgensen Engineering or Wild West. No written consent, as was required by paragraph 7.3 of the Phase I agreement, included Jorgensen Engineering in the arbitration. The record does not contain any evidence which indicates that Jorgensen Engineering and Wild West had a separate oral agreement to submit their disputes to arbitration. Because Jorgensen Engineering and Wild West did not have a clear agreement to arbitrate their disputes, the arbitrators exceeded their authority by making an award to gbs&h Architects on behalf of Jorgensen Engineering. See, e.g., Century Ready-Mix Company v. Campbell County School District, 816 P.2d 795 (Wyo.1991) (architect had no duty under a similar clause to arbitrate the subcontractor's dispute).