Marshall v. Gilman

49 N.W. 688, 47 Minn. 131, 1891 Minn. LEXIS 433
CourtSupreme Court of Minnesota
DecidedAugust 24, 1891
StatusPublished
Cited by13 cases

This text of 49 N.W. 688 (Marshall v. Gilman) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Minnesota primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Marshall v. Gilman, 49 N.W. 688, 47 Minn. 131, 1891 Minn. LEXIS 433 (Mich. 1891).

Opinion

Yanderburgh, J.

1. The findings of fact by the trial court are, we think, sustained by the evidence, and warrant the judgment. This action is for a rescission of a contract for an exchange of certain real property owned by plaintiff, in the city of St. Paul, for certain lots in the city of New York, which contract has .been mutually executed by the delivery of deeds in pursuance thereof. The court finds “that said defendant, being very anxious and desirous to dispose of said property in New York City, owned as aforesaid by him, either by sale or in exchange for other property, on or about the 15th day of February, 1889, employed,' authorized, and directed [132]*132Canby & Cathcart, a firm of real-estate agents residing and doing business in the said city of St. Paul, to negotiate for him a sale, or exchange for other property, of his said New York property, and wrote and delivered to them a letter, to be shown by them to persons to whom they might offer, for sale or exchange, said New York property, in which letter he professed and pretended to give a true and correct statement as to the value and character of said New York property; that said defendant also delivered to his said agents, Canby & Cathcart, two certain photographs, which he professed and pretended were a true and correct representation of said property, and its location and surroundings, to be by them shown to persons to whom they might offer said New York property for sale or exchange ; that said Canby & Cathcart, as the agents of said defendant, on or about the 15th day of February, 1889, informed said plaintiff that they had said New York property for*sale or exchange, and delivered to him as agents of said defendant the letter aforesaid, and exhibited to him as agents of said defendant the photographs aforesaid; that said plaintiff was a resident of the said city of St. Paul, and had no personal knowledge or means of knowledge as to the character, condition, or value of said real estate in the city of New York, and relied entirely upon the statements and representations by'said defendant and his said agents, made in and by said letter and photographs, in relation to said New York property; that on or about the 21st day of February, 1889, the plaintiff, relying upon said letter and photographs, was induced to convey, by two warranty deeds by him executed, his property in the city of St. Paul to defendant, in consideration and exchange for a conveyance in fee-simple, by two warranty deeds by said defendant, delivered on the same day, to plaintiff of the above-described New York City property owned by him.” The court also finds that certain material statements and representations contained in the letter referred to were not true as therein set forth, particularly as respects the market value of the property, the cost of the houses, the character of the neighborhood as a residence district; and also that the houses were not first-class houses in every respect, as represented, but, on the contrary, were inferior in workmanship and material, and were [133]*133considerably out of repair at the time said letter was written. The plaintiff then knew nothing of the untruth of any of the representations of the defendant, except that the deed, received by him on the day above mentioned, disclosed that one lot was only 19 feet frontage, instead of 20 feet, as represented to him.

But the court also finds that, “immediately after the consummation of said exchange of properties, and on the last of February or first of March, 1889, the plaintiff went to New York, and personally examined said property, and became acquainted with its location, situation, character, condition, and surroundings, and investigated as to its value. While so in New York, and on the 7th day of March, 1889, the plaintiff, after due notice and advertisement thereof, caused said property to be offered for sale at public auction at the place where real property was usually sold in that manner in said New York City, and, although there was a good attendance at said auction, plaintiff was unable to obtain a bid for said property in excess of the said mortgages upon the same; and thereupon, after further unsuccessful efforts to dispose of said property, the plaintiff, in said month of March, returned to St. Paul. After said return plaintiff did not see said property in New York again, and, so far as the evidence shows, learned nothing more with respect to it, or the truth or falsity of said representations of defendant concerning it, unless it may be as to the price for which it could be disposed of. That plaintiff, after his said return, placed said New York property in the hands of his agents in St. Paul for sale, as his property, gave a party several options upon it at a fixed price, entered into negotiations with the defendant for its repurchase by him, and was offered as high as $5,500 for it in excess of the said mortgages upon it, which proposition he declined, and then, after same was withdrawn, offered to accept it if renewed. In June, 1889, plaintiff paid $775 interest due on the mortgages upon said New York property, and in July and August paid $29.20 premiums for insurance thereon; and so from the time of his said return to St. Paul, in March, down to the time of his attempted rescission of said exchange in October, the plaintiff continued treating said New York property as his own, and endeavoring to dispose of it. I find the fact to be, as tes[134]*134tified by plaintiff, that he knew of facts which entitled him to rescind, and so stated to his agents, Canby & Cathcart, as early as April or May, 1889, but preferred to take his chances of realizing something by a sale of the property, rather than to undergo the annoyance and possible legal complications of a rescission. On the 23d of October, 1889, the plaintiff notified defendant of his election to rescind, which was the first intimation the defendant had of such desire or intention on the part of the plaintiff, or of any claim by plaintiff that the facts had been misrepresented by defendant. In the interval the defendant had disposed of one of the tracts in St. Paul conveyed to him in exchange by plaintiff, the amount realized for the same not clearly appearing in evidence. And in the mean time, also, the construction of a row of tenement houses had been commenced immediately across the street from the New York property, which materially detracted from its value in the market.”

It is contended that the findings of fact are not supported by the evidence, as respects the time of the discovery by plaintiff of the falsity of the alleged representations of defendant in respect to the value and condition of the property ¿ and his election to retain the same. As before stated, we think the findings warranted by the evidence.

The terms of the letter, which contains all the representations upon the faith of which plaintiff acted, and the character and condition of the property, were such as contemplated and required reasonable diligence on plaintiff’s part in making his investigation and deciding what he would do. In the letter referred to the defendant states that he had purchased the property of one Frost of St. Paul; that it was, when purchased, represented to be worth the sum stated; and, after describing the property, he states that “a personal visit to New York City last month resulted in my finding the representations made to be correct.” He also states the information and advice received from others in respect to the property and its value, and the sale of an adjoining tenement.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Beck v. Northwestern Federal Savings & Loan Ass'n
288 N.W. 217 (Supreme Court of Minnesota, 1939)
Burzinski v. Kinyon Investment Co.
256 N.W. 233 (Supreme Court of Minnesota, 1934)
Reinertson v. Struthers
207 N.W. 247 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1926)
Consumers Grain Co. v. Wm. Lindeke Roller Mills
190 N.W. 65 (Supreme Court of Minnesota, 1922)
O'Neil v. Davidson
180 N.W. 102 (Supreme Court of Minnesota, 1920)
Everson v. J. L. Owens Manufacturing Co.
176 N.W. 505 (Supreme Court of Minnesota, 1920)
Bauer v. O'Brien Land Co.
174 N.W. 736 (Supreme Court of Minnesota, 1919)
Gunderson v. Halvorson
168 N.W. 8 (Supreme Court of Minnesota, 1918)
Tidgwell v. Bouma
176 Iowa 47 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1916)
Mayer v. Knudsen
147 N.W. 819 (Supreme Court of Minnesota, 1914)
Anthony v. Slayden
27 Colo. 144 (Supreme Court of Colorado, 1900)
Parsons v. McKinley
57 N.W. 1134 (Supreme Court of Minnesota, 1894)
Marshall v. Gilman
53 N.W. 811 (Supreme Court of Minnesota, 1892)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
49 N.W. 688, 47 Minn. 131, 1891 Minn. LEXIS 433, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/marshall-v-gilman-minn-1891.