Schachter v. Krzynowek

If a seller breaches a real estate sales contract, does the law require the buyer to file a lis pendens to protect the remedy of specific performance against the seller? We hold that the filing of a lis pendens is a tactical decision of the buyer alone. Without such a filing, the buyer may pursue a timely filed specific performance action; if the seller frustrates the remedy by selling the property to another, the buyer may *1063recover the profits the seller realized from the sale.

We state the facts in the light most favorable to the buyer, the party who lost the summary judgment below.1 See,…