John Minor was selected from a wide field of candidates to serve as umpire on the property damage side of a federal lawsuit regarding the property referenced above. The fire loss occurred on a 100 year old historic courthouse in central Mississippi with large portions of the structure collapsing into the building as a result of the fire damage. This building was first class construction for the time and consisted of steel curved joists over the open courtroom, multi wythe brick supporting same and a Kahn system of elevated reinforced concrete decking. The exterior had been covered by an additional layer of hard tan brick made in the old style with wooden moulds by St Joe Brick Co in Slidell Louisiana. This is a brick commonly used in New Orleans and was used to reclad the courthouse after a restoration effort in the 80s. In addition much of the interior grandness had been covered over in an attempt to make the building more energy efficient.
The order establishing John as the umpire directed that he was to act as a 3rd appraiser likely due to the experience of Complete in restoring historical buildings. This experience over the last 20 years of building in the Southeast and experience in the careful rules surrounding appraisal in Mississippi, made John the perfect candidate to resolve this dispute. The appraisal was concluded timely and the lawsuit resolved along with it. John and Complete were proud to serve the citizens of Webster County and the insurer on this unique claim for many millions of dollars.
