Beatty v. Haggard

184 S.W.3d 479, 87 Ark. App. 75
CourtCourt of Appeals of Arkansas
DecidedJune 16, 2004
DocketCA 03-879
StatusPublished
Cited by16 cases

This text of 184 S.W.3d 479 (Beatty v. Haggard) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Arkansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Beatty v. Haggard, 184 S.W.3d 479, 87 Ark. App. 75 (Ark. Ct. App. 2004).

Opinions

Andree Layton Roaf, Judge.

Appellants Mark and Patsy Beatty brought an action for rescission of a real-estate contract against appellees James and Sarah Haggard based on constructive fraud. The Beattys appeal from the trial court’s decision that they failed to prove either actual or constructive fraud by clear and convincing evidence. On appeal, the Beattys argue that the trial court erred in: (i) finding that the necessary burden of proof for constructive fraud was clear and convincing evidence; and (2) finding that they had failed to prove the necessary elements of either actual or construe-tive fraud. We agree that the trial court clearly erred in finding that the Beattys had failed to prove the elements of fraud, and reverse and remand.

On April 24, 2000, the Beattys entered into a real-estate contract with the Haggards to purchase their home located in Faulkner County for $174,800. The Haggards provided the Beat-tys with an owner’s property disclosure statement, dated January 10, 2000, in which they indicated that there had not been any “room additions, structural modifications or other alterations or repairs” made since the property was originally constructed; that there had not been “any settling from any cause, or slippage, sliding or other poor soil conditions”; that there had not been any known defects in the structure or substructure of any improvements; and that there were no other known defects in the property.

After discovering evidence of settling in the house, the Beattys filed suit against the Haggards in October 2001. The Beattys alleged in their complaint that subsequent to taking possession, they noticed “cracks in the ceiling of certain areas of the residence, separation of the floor trim in the same areas, cracks in the mortar of the brick work and vertical cracks in the bricks themselves on the north side of the residence.” In addition, the Beattys alleged that upon further investigation, they discovered that the house was settling on its north side and that the Haggards had poured additional concrete along and adjacent to the foundation at the northeast corner of the home, “in an apparent (but unsuccessful) attempt to stop the settlement.” The Beattys further stated that this additional concrete was covered with dirt and grass and was not visible at the time of purchase. They alleged that the Haggards were aware of the settlement problem, that the problem was not disclosed on the owner’s disclosure statement, that they relied upon the disclosure statement, and that they would not have bought the home had the settlement problems been disclosed. The Beattys alleged that the failure to disclose the foundation or settlement problems constituted a constructive fraud against them, and they prayed for rescission of the purchase, or in the alternative, damages for the cost to repair the residence, for loss of value, and other consequential damages.

The Haggards denied the allegations and moved for summary judgment, which was denied by the trial court. The Haggards also filed a motion requesting that the trial be bifurcated on the issues of liability and damages, which was granted.

The evidence presented at trial on the liability issue established that James Haggard was an experienced builder, that the Haggards had the home in question built in 1995 by their son, John Haggard, who was in the business of building homes, and that they were the only occupants of the home until they sold it to the Beattys. In October 1999, James Haggard testified that he noticed some small cracks in the sheetrock above the east window in a bedroom on the northeastern corner of the house and above the interior door in that bedroom. He stated that there was also a small crack above the bathroom window on the north side of the house. Mr. Haggard further discovered some cracks in the mortar of the exterior brick on the north side beneath the bathroom window and on the east side of the house. He called his son out to examine the cracks, and they decided to dig down to the base of the concrete footing of the house along the northeastern corner to see if the cracking was the result of a structural problem.

Mr. Haggard and his son enlisted David Tindall, who used his backhoe to do the digging, and Joe Gormley to assist with the work. Mr. Haggard stated that they dug several feet along the north and east sides, although he stopped at the sewer cutoff on the north side. He testified that they found no cracks or other structural damage to the footing. Instead of replacing the loose dirt where they had dug, Mr. Haggard testified that they decided to pour concrete in the hole because otherwise, when it rained, the soft dirt would have compacted and collected water next to the footing of the house. He stated that this was just a precaution, as they found no structural damage, and that this concrete was not affixed to the foundation with rebar. He then covered up the concrete with dirt, and he testified that the concrete would not have been visible to the Beattys or to the home inspector.

Mr. Haggard testified that he also had someone come out and “tuck point” the mortar that had cracked on the brick exterior of the house. To repair the cracks in the sheetrock in the northeastern bedroom, he put mud on them, repainted, and put a new wallpaper border over them. When the Beattys visited the home prior to their purchase and to their receipt of the disclosure statement, Mr. Haggard testified that he pointed out where the mortar had been tuck pointed, although he did not mention the other repairs or the additional concrete. He further stated that he had accidentally used a different colored mortar when tuck pointing the cracks and that it would have been obvious to anyone that the mortar had been replaced in those areas.

Mr. Haggard testified that all of these repairs were “cosmetic” and that he did not disclose the repairs on the owner’s disclosure statement. He stated that he did not mention the excavation and additional concrete in the disclosure statement because there were no questions that would have required him to do so. When asked about the question that stated, “Are there room additions, structural modifications or other alterations or repairs made to the Property since the Property was originally constructed^]” Mr. Haggard testified that he answered “No” because he interpreted that question as referring only to structural alterations or repairs. Because he stated that all of the repairs he had performed had been cosmetic, not structural, Mr. Haggard did not list them. He also answered in the negative to the question that asked whether there had been any settling from any cause. Mr. Haggard testified at trial that he “had no idea if there was or wasn’t settlement at this house,” although he did not see any evidence of settling when he dug down to the footing. He further testified that he answered the questions on the disclosure statement truthfully, to the best of his knowledge, and that he had no intent to deceive anyone.

Lyman Walker, a home inspector, testified that he inspected the Haggards’ home prior to the purchase by the Beattys. Walker stated that he was not aware of the excavation and additional concrete poured at the northeastern corner of the house or of the cracks in the sheetrock in the corner bedroom. If he had been aware of the additional concrete, Walker testified that he would have included it in his report because it is an “abnormal circumstance,” which would merit further investigation as to its purpose.

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Beatty v. Haggard
184 S.W.3d 479 (Court of Appeals of Arkansas, 2004)

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Bluebook (online)
184 S.W.3d 479, 87 Ark. App. 75, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/beatty-v-haggard-arkctapp-2004.