Pumpelly v. . Phelps
New York Court of Appeals
The action was brought to compel the specific performance of a contract to convey land, or to recover damages alleged to have been sustained by the original plaintiff, by reason of the defendant’s refusal to perform.
Read the full summary
The action was brought to compel the specific performance of a contract to convey land, or to recover damages alleged to have been sustained by the original plaintiff, by reason of the defendant’s refusal to perform. The answer alleges, that the defendant never was the individual owner of the land in question, and never had any interest in it, except as trustee of Catharine W. Van Rensselaer, under a deed of trust, which gave the defendant no authority to sell the land in question, without the written consent of Mrs. Van Rensselaer; that, at the time of the contract, the plaintiff, and her…
1Opinion of the Court
Marón, J.
There has never seemed to me to have been any very good foundation for the rule, which excused a party from the performance of his contract, to sell and convey lands, because he had not the title, which he had agreed to convey. There seems to have been considerable diversity of opinion in the courts, as to the grounds, upon which the rule itself is based.
In England, the rule seems to have been sustained upon the ground of an implied understanding of the parties, that the parties must have contemplated the difficulties attendant upon the conveyance. In the leading case on this subject…
2Cited by63 opinions
- President of Delaware & Hudson Canal Co. v. Pennsylvania Coal Co.New York Court of Appeals · 1872
- Morgan v. BellWashington Supreme Court · 1892
- Schmittler v. . SimonNew York Court of Appeals · 1886
- Hammond v. HanninMichigan Supreme Court · 1870
- Remington Paper Co. v. . O'DoughertyNew York Court of Appeals · 1880
58 more not listed; retrieve them via the Exa API.