In re John Campbell Realty, Inc.

516 A.2d 138, 147 Vt. 335, 1986 Vt. LEXIS 418
CourtSupreme Court of Vermont
DecidedMay 16, 1986
DocketNo. 83-629
StatusPublished

This text of 516 A.2d 138 (In re John Campbell Realty, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Vermont primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
In re John Campbell Realty, Inc., 516 A.2d 138, 147 Vt. 335, 1986 Vt. LEXIS 418 (Vt. 1986).

Opinion

Peck, J.

Charles Brown (Brown), John Campbell (Campbell) and John Campbell Realty, Inc. (Campbell Realty) appeal an order of the Vermont Real Estate Commission which revoked the real estate license of Campbell Realty, and suspended the licenses of Brown and Campbell for six months and two years, respectively. The Commission found that Campbell and Brown had demonstrated untrustworthiness and bad faith in their conduct involving the sale of a farm, and imposed the sanctions pursuant to 26 V.S.A. § 2296. We affirm.

The facts of this case are complicated. The sequence of events which gave rise to this proceeding began in March of 1981 when Campbell Realty obtained a listing agreement to sell a farm in Derby, Vermont, owned by Guy and Susan Fortin. The principal [336]*336broker of Campbell Realty was Brown. Although Campbell owns Campbell Realty, he is not a broker for the corporation, but had a separate broker’s license and office.

In June 1981, Gilbert and Marie Fleury and their stepson Yves Thiaux (hereinafter the Fleurys) came from France to Vermont to look for a dairy farm to buy after looking unsuccessfully for a farm in Quebec. The Fleurys speak French but not English. Although only Campbell Realty had the listing, both Campbell and Brown showed the Fortin farm to the Fleurys in June, 1981. Campbell speaks French; Brown does not. A tentative agreement was made that the Fleurys would buy the farm for $450,000, which included the real estate, the dairy herd, machinery, personal property, and a silo. The Fleurys needed to obtain visas, immigration documents, and financing, and to obtain permission from the French government to transfer funds out of France before they could definitely purchase the farm. They also needed to sell their real estate in France to obtain the necessary funds.

A sales agreement was signed on June 24, 1981, which made the sale contingent upon the Fleurys obtaining the necessary immigration documents. The sales agreement also provided for a $20,000 deposit from the buyers to be placed in an escrow account. No closing date was mentioned. During the negotiations surrounding the sale of the farm, Campbell was the primary contact for the Fleurys. He was their interpreter. He took them to Burlington to meet with an attorney to help them with the immigration papers. He invited the Fleurys to stay at his house, which they did. He translated documents for them.

Before the Fleurys returned to France, they requested several things from Campbell. They asked him to get the records of the yearly milk revenues of the farm, the ear tag numbers of the cows, the serial numbers of the equipment, and various maps of the farm. It was the Fleurys’ understanding that Campbell would supply these items. Campbell assured the Fleurys that he would look after the Fortin farm while they were in France, and that the Fortins would take good care of the farm until the closing. The Fleurys then returned to France.

In August 1981, Campbell flew to France and stayed at the Fleurys’ home. While in France, he assisted the Fleurys in obtaining their immigration papers and in arranging the transfer of funds to the United States. At this time, he had the Fleurys sign a second sales agreement which added the name of the Fleurys’ [337]*337other son, deleted the $20,000 escrow deposit requirement and the contingency provision, and established a closing date of October 15, 1981. Both contracts were written in English.

Despite the absence of any requirement of a deposit, later in the fall of 1981, $20,000 of the Fleurys’ money was transferred to the Fortins. The facts surrounding this transfer are murky, but it is undisputed that Campbell went to the Lyndonville Savings Bank, of which he is a director, and obtained a check made out to the Fortins in the amount of $20,000, which came from the Fleurys’ account. This check he gave to the Fortins.

The Fleurys returned to Vermont in January 1982 and stayed at Campbell’s home. In the opinion of the Fleurys, the condition of the farm had deteriorated so drastically that they wanted to reclaim the $20,000 and return to France. According to the Fleurys, they were advised by Campbell that they had to purchase the farm or they would lose up to $50,000: the $20,000 in the Fortins’ possession and a $30,000 commission to Campbell. Thereafter, the price of the farm was renegotiated downward from $450,000 to $410,000; the closing occurred in February 1982.

In March 1983, a four-count complaint was filed with the Real Estate Commission (the Commission) against Brown and Campbell Realty and a seven-count complaint was filed against Campbell, individually. The Commission heard both complaints in one proceeding, made extensive findings of fact, and reached several conclusions. In essence, the Commission determined that Campbell’s actions, taken as a whole, demonstrated untrustworthiness and bad faith, and that Brown, as principal broker, had the ultimate responsibility for the handling of the transaction. Therefore, the Commission held Brown responsible as well. The Commission’s determination of untrustworthiness followed its conclusions that Campbell led the Fleurys to believe he was acting in their behalf, that he violated his fiduciary responsibilities, and that he failed to segregate funds in an escrow account.

The defendants first argue that in essence they were charged with fraud and therefore the applicable standard of proof should have been clear and convincing evidence. Although several of the counts against the defendants allege that Campbell demonstrated untrustworthiness by making false statements, none of the Commission’s conclusions rest upon fraud or fraudulent misrepresen[338]*338tation. The Commission determined the defendants demonstrated untrustworthiness under 26 V.S.A. § 2296(a)(3) and (a)(8).

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Related

Hall v. Miller
465 A.2d 222 (Supreme Court of Vermont, 1983)
In Re Desautels Real Estate, Inc.
457 A.2d 1361 (Supreme Court of Vermont, 1982)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
516 A.2d 138, 147 Vt. 335, 1986 Vt. LEXIS 418, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-re-john-campbell-realty-inc-vt-1986.