In Gamma USA, Inc. v. Pavarini McGovern, LLC, the Appellate Division, First Department, addressed the interplay between pass-through claims, liquidating agreements, liquidated damages provisions, and consequential damages waivers in complex construction disputes. The Court held that a subcontractor could not be exposed, through a pass-through claim, to damages that had been contractually waived or limited under the governing project agreement.

Generally speaking, a party is bound by the terms of a contract[1] to which it is a party. Thus, contracts should be enforced according to their terms when they are “clear and unambiguous”.This is so even when a party fails to read the contract prior to executing same (Id. at 5,*7 and 11) or if the signer does not understand the English language.