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The court noted that beyond the language that the owner was entitled to "keep any and all parts" and the signature line — which was actually signed by the general contractor — the general contractor-subcontractor contract contained no further references to the owner. Moreover, the court observed there was no course of dealing between the owner and the subcontractor which would suggest the owner was a third-party beneficiary to the contract. The owner played no role in the contractor's selection of the subcontractor, and although the owner was very hands-on during the construction process, the subcontractor did not acquiesce in the owner's efforts to step into the general contractor's shoes.

Accordingly, a project owner should be aware that irrespective of its level of involvement in a project, it may not become a third-party beneficiary of a general contractor-subcontractor contract unless the contract specifically provides otherwise.