Court Opinion

ID: 9565012
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-21 19:13:04.078453+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T09:19:19.159721
License: Public Domain

TURSI, Judge,
concurring in part and dissenting in part.
I respectfully dissent as to Part II of the majority opinion which reject’s plaintiffs contention that it should be awarded statutory prejudgment interest.
The trial court found and concluded that defendant Landfill’s breach of contract with the plaintiff resulted in plaintiff’s loss of the saleable materials which Landfill buried under refuse and which remained above bedrock in an amount of 543,000 cubic yards, resulting in a monetary loss of $209,055. This breach by the defendant resulted in a wrongful withholding of property properly due the plaintiff. Therefore, pursuant to § 5-12-102, C.R.S. (1987 Cum.Supp.), plaintiff is entitled to statutory interest at the rate of eight percent per an-num, compounded annually from the time this property was wrongfully withheld or became due. Isbill Associates, Inc. v. City & County of Denver, 666 P.2d 1117 (Colo.App.1983).
The record not only furnished the basis for the computation of the amount of tonnage withheld, but reveals repeated demands by the plaintiff upon the defendant for delivery of the property. If requested, plaintiff would be entitled to interest from the time that the tonnage was made unavailable to it and, thus, wrongfully withheld. See Bassett v. Eagle Telecommunications, Inc., 750 P.2d 73 (Colo.App.1987); Great Western Sugar Co. v. Northern Natural Gas Co., 661 P.2d 684 (Colo.App.1982), aff’d sub nom., KN Energy, Inc. v. Great Western Sugar Co., 698 P.2d 769 (Colo.1985); Jasken v. Sheehy Construction Co., 642 P.2d 58 (Colo.App.1982).
However, on appeal they request only interest from the time that the evidence before the trial court furnished the basis for the determination of the amount withheld.
I would, therefore, remand to the trial court for entry of interest pursuant to § 5-12-102 from the date the case was submitted to the trial court upon the evidence.