BELLINGHAM - Whatcom Middle School is back open and filled with students and staff, but two civil lawsuits over a November 2009 fire that destroyed the school are still working through courts in Whatcom and Snohomish counties.
Bellingham School District and Advanced Construction Inc., the company contracted to do the seismic upgrade work on the school leading up to the fire, have filed civil lawsuits against each other and other parties potentially involved in the fire that destroyed the school.
Both sides are trying to make the other lawsuit disappear.
In early July, the School Insurance Association of Washington filed a lawsuit in Whatcom County Superior Court on behalf of the School District. The lawsuit is against Snohomish County-based Advanced Construction, the company contracted to do seismic upgrades to the school in late 2008, and against Gagnon Welding, the subcontractor used by Advanced that was performing welding work the night of the fire.
The fire was ruled accidental, with the cause likely related to welding work that was happening on the roof hours before the fire started, according to fire investigators. The School Insurance Association paid for expenses related to closing, demolishing and rebuilding the school, and filed the lawsuit to recover some of the cost.
The Whatcom County lawsuit alleges that both companies were negligent and that the negligence led to the Nov. 5, 2009, fire that destroyed the school. The lawsuit also alleges that Advanced Construction violated the contract it had with the district by not ensuring all subcontractors had proper insurance and followed applicable laws.
But in early June, Advanced Construction filed a "declaratory judgment" in Snohomish County Superior Court against the school district and the School Insurance Association asking the court to interpret the contract and block the district and insurance company from collecting financial damages.
According to court documents, Advanced says the contract required the district to have better insurance coverage for the project and that it included a "waiver of subrogation," which means an insurer couldn't come after a third party for causing damage to an insured property.
The Snohomish County lawsuit doesn't include Gagnon Welding.
Since the lawsuits were filed, parties named in both cases have been bouncing back and forth between Whatcom and Snohomish county courts. Both sides have filed motions to dismiss whichever case is in the location they dislike.
Lawyers for Advanced argue that because they filed their lawsuit first and because they're located in Snohomish County, their lawsuit should move forward and the Whatcom County lawsuit should be dismissed, since it relates to the same fire. In court documents, Advanced lawyers say Whatcom County is a biased venue, because the school is located there, that wouldn't allow them to receive a fair judgment.
Lawyers for the school district argue that Snohomish County isn't the proper location for the case because everything happened in Bellingham, including the construction work in question and the fire. According to court documents, district lawyers also say the School Insurance Association shouldn't be named as a defendant, pointing to past cases that ruled insurance companies couldn't directly be sued.
On Aug. 9, Snohomish County Superior Court denied the district and Insurance Association's request to transfer the venue to Whatcom County. On Sept. 6, the court denied a request to drop the association from the case and change the venue to Whatcom County.
On Sept. 9, Whatcom County Superior Court denied Advanced's request to dismiss the Whatcom County case. However a handwritten note on the court document states the "Whatcom County matter is stayed" until the Snohomish County case is dismissed or resolved.
Lawyers will be back in Snohomish County Superior Court on Thursday, Sept. 29, for another discussion about moving venues.
