Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court hears arguments over Prompt Payment Act and arbitration award in Columbia Construction dispute

The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court on Tuesday heard oral argument in SJC13819, a dispute arising from a construction arbitration in which an arbitrator ordered payment and then allowed a recoupment counterclaim to proceed. Appellant Columbia Construction urged the court to reinstate the arbitration award, while appellee JC Cannistraro argued the arbitrator exceeded his powers and that enforcement of the Prompt Payment Act requires meaningful consequences for violations.

"We're asking that the court reinstate the award and protect the sanctity of arbitration," counsel for Columbia, Jeffrey Nadeauchi, told the court, framing the central legal question as whether the arbitrator exceeded his authority by permitting Columbia's counterclaim after ordering payment. Nadeauchi urged the court to limit Graycor's implied-waiver rule, saying the arbitration here predated Graycor and that the arbitrator resolved the factual question whether any invoices were "deemed approved" before…