Allison Steel Mfg. Co. v. Superior Court

In Allison Steel Mfg. Co. v. Superior Court, 22 Ariz. App. 76, 523 P.2d 803 (1974), the issue before the court was whether a "specific" indemnity provision, contained in a prime contract that obligated the contractor to indemnify the owner from the consequences of the owner's own negligence, was incorporated by reference into the subcontract between the general contractor and the subcontractor. The incorporating language required the subcontractor to "assume" towards the contractor "all the obligations and responsibilities" the contractor had assumed towards the owner. The Court held this and other language in the subcontract failed to meet the "stringent standard" that the "intention to compensate the indemnitee for his own negligence must be expressed in 'clear and unequivocal terms.'" Id. at 80, 523 P.2d at 807.