ST. LOUIS -- U.S. Rep. Russ Carnahan has settled a lawsuit with a roofing company that claimed the St. Louis Democrat did not pay for $17,000 worth of work.

The lawsuit against Carnahan and his wife Debra alleged the couple did not pay about half of a $35,800 bill to replace the roof and make other repairs on the couple’s home in the Compton Heights neighborhood.

American Exteriors Inc. of Barnhart in Jefferson County placed a lien on Carnahan’s home before fiing the Jan. 2009 lawsuit seeking $17,364 plus attorney fees.

Carnahan, the suit says, signed a detailed contract with American Exteriors that included resetting a set of copper finials on the two-and-a-half story home and painting the dormers on the house’s exterior.

The contract also stipulated that “all roofers must be legal residents to work on repairs.”

When the lawsuit was filed last year, an attorney for American Exteriors said the Carnahans did not pay because they were unhappy with the work.

They may still be unhappy, but, at least, they have resolved their lawsuit: The suit was settled last week with a mutual, and undisclosed, settlement. The case file does not list a party at fault, nor any settlement figure.

The roofing company he hired does not use union labor. However, a Carnahan campaign spokesman said that his insurance company -- not the congressman -- selected American Exteriors.

The work, Carnahan's campaign says, was to repair storm damage -- apparently from a tornado that hit the home.