Gerhold Concrete Co. v. St. Paul Fire & Marine Insurance Co.

St. Paul Fire and Marine Insurance Company (St. Paul) provided a payment bond for First Dakota Enterprises, Inc. (First Dakota), a general contractor for a public construction project. Gerhold Concrete Company, Inc. (Gerhold), supplied concrete to CMS, Inc., First Dakota’s subcontractor. CMS failed to pay Gerhold for the concrete, and Gerhold sued First Dakota on a contract theory and St. Paul on the performance bond.

The district court dismissed First Dakota from the suit but determined that a jury could find that Gerhold could recover against St. Paul on the bond. A jury returned a verdict…