CHIEF Judge Ramona V. Manglona of the District Court for the NMI has issued a default judgment order against an apartment investor, Fairyland Investment LCC, as requested by the plaintiff, Peace and Order Trading Corp.
In her order on Monday, the judge directed the clerk of court to enter a default judgment against Fairyland Investment in the principal amount of $767,697.50 plus attorney’s fees and costs, including applicable federal interest rate for post-judgment interest.
Fairyland Investment failed to answer or otherwise plead its case, the judge said.
A contractor, Peace and Order sued Fairyland Investment, which is owned by Zhi Qi Shen, for breach of construction contract and unjust enrichment.
Peace and Order, which is represented by attorney Colin Thompson, said it was hired by Fairyland Investment to remodel and build an apartment building on Navy Hill, Saipan.
At the bench trial on Tuesday, the judge made no ruling on the plaintiff’s application for a mechanic’s lien but placed it under advisement.
An online legal dictionary defines a mechanic’s lien as a legal claim against property, and is typically used by contractors or suppliers when they haven’t received payment for improvements they made to a property.
According to the lawsuit, Peace and Order stopped work on the Navy Hill project because Fairyland Investment refused to pay the amount owed for work completed under the construction contract.
Thompson said Peace and Order is entitled to damages not less than $775,701.98 plus interest and attorney’s fees, and a mechanic’s lien against the real property occupied by the apartment that Peace and Order renovated.
