Kaufman v. Gordon

24 Misc. 2d 240, 197 N.Y.S.2d 1013, 1960 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 3456
CourtNew York Supreme Court
DecidedMarch 8, 1960
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 24 Misc. 2d 240 (Kaufman v. Gordon) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering New York Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Kaufman v. Gordon, 24 Misc. 2d 240, 197 N.Y.S.2d 1013, 1960 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 3456 (N.Y. Super. Ct. 1960).

Opinion

Harold Baer, J.

This is an action for breach of warranty in the sale of shares of stock in a realty development corporation. The case was tried before the court without a jury and formal findings of fact and conclusions of law were waived.

Defendants owned a large tract of land in Scarsdale, New York. They developed this land with roads and utilities. Houses were custom-built on order upon the first four sections and then the remaining four sections, which were not built upon, were sold to the plaintiff Most. Actually, plaintiff Most purchased three shares of stock in the corporation that owned these assets from the three defendants. He paid a consideration of $345,147.79 for these shares of stock in Huntley Estates of [241]*241Greenburgh, No. 3 Corp., which was the title owner of the land, improvements, sample houses, and other assets that made the transaction a purchase of “ a going business ”. There are only a few pertinent clauses in the contract of sale made on March 22, 1954 for the purpose of this lawsuit. The defendants represented in that contract and by separate affidavits of the three defendants as follows:

On page 3, by paragraph 1 (g): “ (g) That said corporation has duly paid any and all real estate taxes, water charges and water taxes, and Westchester County sewer system taxes levied, assessed or imposed upon it up to and including the period ending as follows: Town Tax through 12/31/53; School Tax through 6/30/54.”
On page 5, by paragraph 2: “ 2. The Sellers, jointly and severally, hereby guarantee payment of and will save the Purchaser, his personal representatives and assigns and each of them, free and harmless of and from all demands, claims, actions or causes of action, assessments, losses, damages and attorneys ’ fees by or by reason of any claims, obligations, debts, demands or liabilities existing against the corporation prior to and including the date of closing or arising or growing out of this purchase agreement, including but not limited to any and all federal income tax, franchise tax, capital stock tax, if any, whether then due or payable or subsequently determined or assessed, and of and from any assessments which may hereafter be made by the federal, state and local governments from the inception of the corporation to and including the date of the closing.”
On page 8, by paragraph 3: “ The purchase price set forth above shall be increased by apportioned prepaid real estate taxes and water rates, if any, computed as of the date of closing, and shall be diminished by the following, also computed as of the date of closing; unpaid real estate taxes and water rates, if any, sewer taxes, charges or assessment, if any, even though the same or any of them are or may become payable in annual installments, including those which are to become due and payable after the closing hereunder; a sum equal to the franchise taxes payable upon the dissolution of the corporation.”
On page 14, by paragraph 8: “ (g) That if the premises or any part thereof shall be or shall have been affected by assessment or assessments which are or may become payable in annual installments, of which the first installment is then a charge of lien or has not been paid, then for the purposes of this contract all the unpaid installments of any such assessment, including those which are to be due and payable after the closing here[242]*242under, shall be the obligation of the Sellers and the purchase price of the capital stock shall be diminished by the amount thereof and shall be deducted from the cash payment to the extent available and the balance, if any, from the demand note.”
On page 1 of the Addendum: “ (c) That there are no unpaid assessments in any form or fashion, whatsoever against the aforesaid premises, regardless of whether such assessments are or may become payable in annual installments, including those which become due and payable after the closing hereunder.”
On page 3 of the Addendum: (k) That so far as Sellers know, there is no reason why Sections E, E, Gr and H cannot be developed in the same manner as Sections A, B, O and D: and that so far as Sellers know, there is no action threatened or contemplated by any authority, federal, state or local, which would prevent such development.”
The purchaser Most, though designated as the principal in the contract, was in fact representing others, and this likewise is borne out not only by the testimony but the contract: “ 2. * * * In the event that any matter, thing, state of facts or claim of the kind and nature referred to in the first paragraph hereof [representations and warranties] is presented to the Purchaser, his personal representatives and assigns or to the corporation, its successors and assigns ”,

On page 9 of the Addendum:

“ 6. All warranties and representations contained herein and in the principal contract between the parties shall be deemed to be continuing warranties and representations and shah survive the closing hereunder. ” * * *
“ 9. The Purchaser shall have the right to assign and transfer this agreement, together with the right to the sum of $25,000.00 paid on the execution hereof, and upon the execution of such assignment and the assumption by such assignee of all the Purchaser’s obligations hereunder, a copy of which assignment and assumption shall be furnished to the Sellers, Amicus Most shall be relieved and discharged of any and all liability and obligation hereunder to the same effect and extent as if such assignee had originally been named as the Purchaser hereunder. ’ ’

After the sale of stock was consummated on May 24, 1954, plaintiff Most dissolved the Huntley Estates Corporation and he, with the principals for whom he was acting as agent, formed several corporations for the construction and sale of one-family houses. All of the corporations thus formed and all of the individuals interested therein, assigned their rights in the original contract and in this cause of action against the defend[243]*243ants, to the four plaintiffs herein. In August, 1954, less than three months after the closing of the transaction, plaintiffs were apprised of the fact that sewer installations had not been paid for by the defendants as represented. The North Ardsley Sewer District assessed each of the lots involved $805, or a total assessment for the 203 lots of $163,415. The plaintiffs also ascertained that three of the lots purchased could not be built upon, as defendants previously had agreed to dedicate them to the town for public park purposes. This suit was commenced. The plaintiff is seeking damages for breach of warranty with respect to the afore-mentioned three lots and the sewer assessments.

The parties agree that shares of stock are subject to article 5 of the Personal Property Law (Agar v. Orda, 144 Misc. 149, affd. 239 App. Div. 827, affd. 264 N. Y. 248; Bishop v. Tracy & Co., 237 App. Div. 496; McClure v. Central Trust Co., 165 N. Y. 108, 123).

Defendants deny liability on many grounds. However, evidence of the misrepresentation and breach of contract is clear with respect to the sewer assessment and the three lots.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
24 Misc. 2d 240, 197 N.Y.S.2d 1013, 1960 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 3456, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/kaufman-v-gordon-nysupct-1960.