A Galveston County, TX, man has sued a contractor he hired for breach of contract, accusing the company of taking half of the payment for its work, then attempting to renegotiate the deal.
According to court discovery documents filed Aug. 9 in Galveston County District Court, the plaintiff, Matthew Helle, contracted with Sonja Garcia-Harless and 3RD Coast Custom Renovations in June 2023 to perform landscaping work at Helle’s home in League City, TX.
According to the documents, the contract provided that the defendants would “install pavers in the backyard of the plaintiff’s residence, would build a raised garden bed, and would install 3 shade sail poles river rock,” the documents said. The contract was for $29,500, with half paid before work began and the other half upon completion. Hale accepted the defendants’ offer and “relied on the defendants’ representations that resulted in the formation of the contract,” the suit states.
Helle paid $14,750 on June 9 for the first half of the contract, after which work was to start. On June 12, however, the defendants sent Helle an invoice which reflected the cost of the contract, payment terms, that payment he made, and the scope of the work to be performed. However, no work was done.
Instead, the defendants began “sending unsolicited text messages to the plaintiff’s wife, demanding more money for the project than was agreed to,” the suit states. “That is, instead of performing the work under the contract, the defendants were attempting to renegotiate the terms of the contract. This was a troubling development to the plaintiff and his wife. The defendants refused to perform any work, as agreed and contracted.”
The lawsuit accuses Garcia-Harless and 3RD Coast Custom Renovations with breach of contract, seeking the return of $14,750, as well as costs and attorney’s fees.
Helle is represented by Jon. D. Brooks of Brooks LLP in Corpus Christi, TX.