Presta v. Monnier

The plaintiff sued to recover a deposit made on the purchase price of an apartment house owned by the defendants. In a counterclaim, the defendants sought damages and equitable relief for the plaintiff’s failure to carry out the agreement of purchase. Judgment was rendered for the plaintiff against the named defendant on the complaint and against both defendants on the counterclaim. Since the judgment on the complaint is dispositive of that on the counterclaim, we discuss only the former.

The apartment house had been devised, subject to a life estate in their stepmother, to the defendants,…