Flow down clauses in subcontracts
Subcontract flow down clauses pass through the terms and conditions of the general contract into the subcontract. Dan Hawbaker over at Construction Law Blog points out the downside of a poorly drafted flow down provision.
The post summarizes a Texas appeals court's decision in Bencon Management General Contracting, Inc. v. Boyer, Inc..
The general contractor in that case asserted as a defense to a subcontractor's lawsuit that the subcontractor had not complied with a condition in the general contract. Unfortunately, the flow down provision only required the subcontractor to comply with the general contract conditions "as applicable to the Subcontractor's work." Accordingly, the appellate court held only those general contract conditions applicable to the subcontractor's work--not all of the conditions--applied.