Fox v. Lawson

Plaintiff, Eugene W. Fox, brought suit against defendant, Helen Curtis, in the circuit court of Crawford County seeking specific performance of an alleged oral contract to convey real estate to plaintiff. Defendant counterclaimed against plaintiff and filed a third-party action against other interested parties, who are not involved in this appeal, to quiet title and to eject plaintiff from the property. Following a bench trial, judgment was entered in favor of defendant and plaintiff appealed.

In 1968, Helen Curtis, a widow, signed a contract for deed to purchase a 340-acre farm, the subject…