Niedermeyer v. Latimer

The question before us is whether a party is entitled to contractual attorney fees, made reciprocal by statute, if the party successfully defends against an action for breach and also wins rescission of the contract. The Court of Appeals decided that a party in such a situation could not recover attorney fees, and we affirm that decision.

In the present case, plaintiff initiated the litigation by suing to rescind a contract to purchase defendants’ vacation house. Defendants counterclaimed for breach of contract and demanded attorney fees under a provision of the contract. Defendants initially…