| PAY me in full for building your bungalow.
No, there were defects and I'm suing you for damages.  | | Mr Yen's bungalow in Siglap. -- GAVIN FOO | A dispute over the building of a two-storey Siglap bungalow has led to a contractor and an auditor suing each other. Emma Contract is suing Mr Yen Heng Fook, 52, a partner at audit firm Ernst & Young, for an alleged unpaid bill of about $152,000. Mr Yen had hired the contractor to build his house, and construction work had been carried out from February 2002 to June 2003. Emma Contract said its contract with Mr Yen stated it would be paid $488,615.56, but claimed in court papers that Mr Yen has paid only $336,607.75 to date. MOVED IN Mr Yen, who is also an executive committee member of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants, has since moved into the house with his family. The 6,976 sq ft house is slightly larger than two basketball courts. In its suit, which was filed on 23 Jun, Emma Contract is demanding what it claims is $152,007.81 in unpaid charges, interest. It alleged that Mr Yen made irregular and delayed payments. After failing to get Mr Yen to pay the outstanding amount, it took legal action against him for breach of contract through lawyer Andrew Tan Tiong Gee. When contacted at his office, Mr Yen, who is also the head of the small and medium enterprises services department at Ernst & Young, said: 'It's not that I don't want to pay. Emma Contract didn't do up the house according to the architect's drawings. 'The company claimed I didn't pay, but I have receipts to prove my case. I'm a professional too, and I also want my clients to pay after I do work for them.' He said there were instances of delays and defects in the construction - the completion of the house was delayed by 112 days - and the contractor did not ask for more time to finish the job. He added that the contractor did not perform certain tasks that were requested. A sink was not installed according to his requirements and there was patchy paintwork on the walls. Other alleged defects include cracks on the wall in his study, stained ceilings and corroded metal railings. Mr Yen is now counter-suing Emma Contract and its owner, Mr Max Han Fuquan, over what he claims is defective work, for damages of $157,525.88. NO CONTRACT 'I'm counter-suing him as I need the money to repair the defects,' Mr Yen said. In the court papers, Mr Yen refuted claims that he breached their agreement and denied signing any contract with the contractor. Instead, he stated that if there was any contract, it was signed between him and Mr Han, not with Emma Contract. So technically, the company has no claims against him. Mr Yen also denied owing the company $152,007.81, adding that his own calculations showed he only owed $83,708.48. He claimed that, to date, he has made 17 cheque payments totalling about $373,000 and cited the cheque numbers in his defence. WEAR AND TEAR Responding to Mr Yen's allegations, Emma Contract insisted that it signed a contract with him. The company also denied that Mr Yen owed less than what it is asking for. It added that any delays in the work were caused by his requests for unique patterns and designs of wrought-iron fixtures. It also claimed that the patchy paintwork, stained ceilings and corroded metal railings resulted from normal wear and tear. If there are any defects, Emma Contract stated, Mr Yen should prove his case, especially when his family has been living in the house since 16 Jun 2003. | 
