Town of Fairfield v. D'Addario

149 Conn. 358 · Supreme Court of Connecticut · 1962

Facts

The Town of Fairfield contracted with D’Addario for sewerage construction, including an indemnity clause. Edmund Kant sued the town for injuries from a defective highway in the construction area. The town settled with Kant but failed to notify D’Addario of the claim or suit for over three years, after which D’Addario refused to defend or indemnify.

Issue

Was the town required to give D’Addario notice of Kant's action under the indemnity contract, and if so, was the three-year delayed notice timely and reasonable?

Holding

The court held that the town was required to give D’Addario reasonable notice, and the three-year delay in providing notice was unreasonable, thus D’Addario was not obligated to indemnify the town.

Rule

Even if not explicitly stated, reasonable notice is an implied condition precedent in an indemnity contract, especially when the indemnitor has a duty to defend, to allow the indemnitor a reasonable opportunity to perform their obligations.

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Case brief last reviewed 2026-04-28. Prepared by CaseReader from the published opinion.