In Loney v. St. Croix Lutheran High School Association, Deborah Eckland and Chris Bentley defended St. Croix Lutheran High School against a claim that nearby flooding was caused by St. Croix’s activities in building a new dormitory to house its international students. The plaintiffs alleged that they experienced flooding on multiple occasions during rainstorms following completion of the dorm.

Attorneys Eckland and Bentley worked to bring in the responsible architect and contractors that designed and oversaw the work in connection with the construction of the dorm and the storm drain management system. After full discovery, it was clear that St. Croix did nothing wrong. Any damage was due to the poor design of the storm system, which St. Croix’s expert determined failed to properly divert storm water to the nearby manmade lake as intended. Because of this, St. Croix was owed indemnification from the architect and general contractor for the expenses associated with prosecuting this case. On the eve of trial, settlement among all parties was achieved.