Verdict in Bob Perry case was a message about court system

When a jury ruled against Houston homebuilder Bob Perry this week in the long legal battle with a retirement-age Mansfield couple with a defective house, it was more than a judgment.

It was a message.

The case has wound through the system for a decade. When Perry wouldn’t fix the house, an arbiter awarded $800,000 to Bob and Jane Cull.

Lower courts ordered him to pay, but he appealed, and two years ago, the Texas Supreme Court dismissed the arbiter’s award, saying the couple had waived their rights. Everything went back to district court to start all over.

On Monday, after a two-week trial, a jury in Fort Worth awarded the couple $58 million.

“They wanted to teach a lesson: Don’t ever do that again to anybody else,” said the Culls’ attorney, Van Shaw.

To some, the case illustrates how construction disputes can last for years without resolution and how the system is stacked against average homeowners who challenge homebuilders with wealth and political influence.

Perry is one of the state’s biggest homebuilders and the biggest campaign contributor in Texas. He once helped bankroll the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth attack against John Kerry in the 2004 presidential race. He helped Gov. Rick Perry (no relation) win re-election four years ago with $1 million through a governor’s group - and the governor spearheaded creation of a state agency that critics say was designed to protect homebuilders from homeowner complaints.

Bob Perry has also given millions of dollars to scores of state politicians, including every member of the state Supreme Court. The billionaire homebuilder is a major figure in the effort to limit lawsuits and cap jury awards against business.

On Tuesday, his spokesman cast Perry, not the Culls, as the victim.

“This is absurd by any measure and an abuse of the legal system,” said Anthony Holm. “It’s just these types of outrageous verdicts that threaten to destroy jobs in Texas and drive businesses away.”

Holm called the verdict “jackpot justice” and served notice that Perry intends to appeal. The appeals could take years.

[HOT: Abuse of the legal system? But isn't Perry the one abusing the system by dragging this couple through the courts for a decade in hopes of wearing them out? And isn't it an abuse to contribute millions to the campaigns of judges and politicians? It seems foolish for Perry to issue his press release, since it caused the story of his abusive behavior to be picked up nationally.]

“I can tell you from experience, the war is really just beginning,” said Shaw, who estimates the legal battle could take another three or four years.

The jury awarded actual damages of $7 million against Perry Homes on Monday, along with $7 million against the warranty underwriters insurance company and $44 million in punitive damages.

Whether the Culls actually ever collect anything like that amount is unclear. The judge could lower the award and Perry will challenge it on appeal.

But for the Culls, the verdict was a victory.

“It feels like a modern day David and Goliath triumph. Certainly, God had a hand in this justice,” said Jane Cull’s sister, Judy Noble. “At last, truth and right trumps power and money.”

The Culls say they have had to live in a house with a broken foundation, cracked walls, windows that won’t open and joists that move.

Jane Cull said she worries when the grandchildren come over to play. The case has cost the couple their savings and their health, she said. Bob Cull, who is 72, sat through the trial in a wheelchair.

During the trial, the Culls’ lawyers argued that the structure continues to shift and move. Attorneys for Perry countered by arguing that the Culls were overstating the problems.

Holm said that the homebuilder offered at one point to buy the house back, but Shaw said the couple would have lost $100,000 had they accepted.

Shaw dismissed Holm’s claim that the verdict was too high.

“This was a just verdict,” he said. “If you had sat through that trial, I guarantee you it was not a crazy number.”

Bob Cull said Tuesday that he understands there are miles to go. But the verdict was sweet.

“I couldn’t help but recall the Perry rep response that they simply wanted their day in court,” Cull said. “Well, they got it."

Read more about Bob Perry, The Godfather of Texas Homebuilding & Politics.