Littauer v. Thompson

4 Mass. L. Rptr. 439
CourtMassachusetts Superior Court
DecidedOctober 18, 1995
DocketNo. 932611
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 4 Mass. L. Rptr. 439 (Littauer v. Thompson) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Massachusetts Superior Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Littauer v. Thompson, 4 Mass. L. Rptr. 439 (Mass. Ct. App. 1995).

Opinion

Hely, J.

Introduction

The court will apply the summary judgment principles stated in Kourouvacilis v. General Motors Corp., 410 Mass. 706, 711-16 (1991). The defendants are entitled to summary judgment because they made no false statement of fact or fraudulent nondisclosure and because the buyers agreed in the contract to accept the risk of any unknown defect in the septic system.

I. THE FRAUD AND MISREPRESENTATION COUNTS AGAINST THE THOMPSONS AND THE CLAIM OF A DUTY TO DISCLOSE

Count I of the plaintiffs’ Complaint alleges fraud or negligent representation against the Thompsons. Count I alleges that the Thompsons “knew or had reason to know of the existence of the illegal work" on the house’s septic system and that the Thompsons “failed to disclose the existence of the illegal septic system” in the negotiations culminating in the sale of the property. Count III, alleging negligent misrepresentation, adds that the Thompsons “knew or had reason to know that the Littauers would rely on the defendants’ certification of the condition of the septic system.” Count III alleges that the defendants were negligent in their “failure to advise the Littauers of the illegal septic system.”

In their affidavits in support of their motion for summary judgment, Mr. and Mrs. Thompson both state that they made no oral statement or representation of any kind to the plaintiffs regarding the septic system. The plaintiffs’ opposition to the Thompsons’ motion relies on two prior incidents relating to the septic system and contends that the Thompsons’ failure to disclose these two incidents amounted to tor-tious misrepresentation.

The first incident was a repair made by Robert Pape to a septic system pipe after it had been damaged by a truck. This occurred in 1986 or 1987, five or six years [440]*440before the sale of the house to the plaintiff. Mr. Thompson did not know if Mr. Pape had a permit for this work. John Thompson Dep. 31-36.

The second incident was Mr. Thompson’s observation of some dampness on the property in August or September, 1991, about eight months before the sale. Mr. Thompson Dep. 43-44. Mr. Thompson had an engineer come to the property and consulted with him about what would be involved if the system had to be changed or upgraded. Mr. Thompson took no further action on this, but he watched the area and did not observe any dampness after this. Mr. Thompson Dep. 44.

Mr. Thompson told the seller, Mrs. Thompson, about the second incident. The Court will assume for purposes of the summary judgment motions that Mr. Thompson’s knowledge about the first incident was also either communicated to Mrs. Thompson or should be imputed to her because Mr. Thompson was acting as her agent for this purpose. '

In asserting that there was a duty to disclose these events, the plaintiffs rely in part of the Seller’s Description of Property, a three page form signed by Mrs. Thompson as the Seller and read by the plaintiff, Thomas Littauer, as one of the buyers prior to the signing of the purchase and sale agreement. The Sellers Description has a list of fifty-eight questions about various aspects of the properly being sold. To the left of each question is a block where the seller checks off an answer of “YES,” “NO,” or “UNKN” (unknown). Question 27 asks “SEWAGE SYSTEM PROBLEMS? EXPLAIN” and is followed by a line and a half for explanation. This box has an “X" filled in indicating “UNKN[OWNJ” for this question. Mr. Thompson made the “X.” He testified that he told his wife that he had seen dampness six months earlier, and “I didn’t want to answer it ‘No’.’’ The plaintiffs further contend that Paragraph 36 of the purchase and sale agreement supports their claim that there was a duty to disclose the prior repair and prior dampness. In Paragraph 36 the seller agreed that the seller “will have the septic system serving the premises pumped and inspected; at the closing he will delivery a Septic System Certificate issued by the Cohasset Board of Health.”

In determining whether the seller had a duly to disclose the prior repair and dampness, the court must consider the parties written contract in its entirety. In the negotiations for this contract, both the buyers and the seller were represented by attorneys. The written contract consists mostly of the Greater Boston Real Estate Board Standard Form Purchase and Sale Agreement. The parties, however, modified the standard form in several places and added six additional paragraphs (31-36) contained in Rider A.

The acceptance-of-deed paragraph (13) and the two paragraphs on warranties and representations (25 and 32) have particular relevance to the plaintiffs’ claim of a duty to disclose. The acceptance-of-deed clause states that acceptance of the deed by the buyer “shall be deemed to be a full performance and discharge of every agreement and obligation herein contained or expressed, except such as are, by the terms hereof, to be performed after the delivery of said deed.” Paragraph 25, entitled “Warranties and Representations” states that the buyer “has not been influenced to enter into this transaction nor has he relied upon any warranties or representations not set forth or incorporated in this agreement or previously made in writing, except for the following . . .” In the space that followed the parties put “None.”

Paragraph 32 also refers to warranties and representations and expresses the buyers’ satisfaction with various systems including the septic system. Paragraph 32 states that the buyer agrees that the buyer “is purchasing the premises ‘as-is,’ without any warranties or representations, expressed or implied.” The buyer states that the buyer “has fully inspected the premises and is satisfied with the condition thereof... and is satisfied as to the working order of all mechanical, electrical, heating, plumbing, septic and other systems and services in the premises, as of the date of the inspection.” Paragraph 32 further states that except as provided in Paragraph 36, buyer “agrees that SELLER shall have no obligation or liability to BUYER with respect to compliance with health or environmental laws or regulations, or any other laws, regulations or requirements with respect to said premises or the occupancy thereof.” The final sentence in this paragraph states that the “provisions hereof shall survive delivery of the deed hereunder.”

Sellers and brokers “are not liable in fraud for failing to disclose every latent defect known to them which reduces materially the value of the property and of which the buyer is ignorant.” Nei v. Burley, 388 Mass. 307, 310 (1983); Swinton v. Whitinsville Savings Bank 311 Mass. 677, 678-79 (1942); Greenery Rehabilitation Group v. Antaramian, 36 Mass.App.Ct. 73, 77 (1994); Solomon v. Birger, 19 Mass.App.Ct. 634, 639 (1985). Homeowners who sell their houses “are not liable for bare nondisclosure in circumstances where no inquiry by a prospective buyer imposes a duty to speak.” Solomon v. Birger, supra. In this case there was no fiduciary duty between the seller and the buyers. They “dealt at arms length with each other and there was no particular duty to speak.” Nei v. Burley, 388 Mass. at 311. In the circumstances of this case, there was no legal duty on the Thompsons to disclose the repair of a broken pipe in 1986 or 1987. There is an absence of evidence in the summary judgment materials to support the claim that the Thompsons had knowledge that this repair was performed illegally or incompetently.

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Bluebook (online)
4 Mass. L. Rptr. 439, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/littauer-v-thompson-masssuperct-1995.