Top Plaintiffs' Verdicts by Dollar: Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority et al. v. Parsons-Dillingham Metro Rail Construction Manager Joint Venture et al.

After an 18-year fight, the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority won $93 million in its breach of contract lawsuit against Parsons-Dillingham Metro Rail Construction Manager Joint Venture for secretly billing for overhead charges on the $4 billion Metro Red Line project.

Both companies are still battling over a False Claims Act lawsuit.

"Public agencies have the right to enforce their contracts even if the administration of the contract hasn't vigorously enforced the agency's rights at the end of the contract," said plaintiffs' attorney Thomas D. Long, a partner at Nossaman LLP. "They can go back, enforce its rights and make sure it hasn't paid too much."

Starting in 1984 and lasting for 20 years, the business contract between MTA and Parsons-Dillingham detailed $365 million in costs around construction management of the Red Line.

In 1996, J. Martin Gerlinger, former finance manager of the Parsons-Dillingham joint venture, alleged the company charged for items such as office supplies when MTA had already paid for those items.

MTA soon filed a breach of contract lawsuit. Los Angeles County Metropolitan Tranportation Authority et al. v. Parsons-Dillingham Metro Rail Construction Manager Joint Venture et al., BC179027 (L.A. Super. Ct., filed March 17, 1998).

"The MTA was paying for all of this support for all of these employees directly like paying the rent in the offices," Long said. "At the same time, we were being billed over time. It was designed to cover those expenses and we weren't being told how it applied."

With 18 years of litigation, 13 judges and five trips to the appellate court, the case is still ongoing. The $93 million award came in February 2014 from the breach of contract case, which the defendants have appealed while the plaintiffs filed a cross-appeal for a higher award. The False Claims Act trial starts in May.

- KIBKABE ARAYA