Legal Case Summaries

Case summaries are provided for educational purposes only, and are not a substitute for legal advice by a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction. Case law may change over time, so be sure to confirm a case is still good law. 

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A Louisiana federal court has considered whether homeowners could collect damages caused by so-called “Chinese drywall”.

During the housing building boom from 2004-06, builders encountered a shortage of domestic drywall and so began importing drywall products. A number of Chinese manufacturers sold drywall products (“Drywall”) to U.S. builders. Most of the...

A Texas federal court has considered whether Florida’s homestead exemption allows a homeowner to protect her condominium from seizure when proceeds from a Ponzi scheme were used to finance the unit.

The Commodities Futures Trading Commission (“Commission”) brought a lawsuit against George Hudgins (“Trader”) seeking a permanent injunction, monetary...

A New York federal court has considered whether the federal Interstate Land Sales Full Disclosure Act (“Act”) allowed potential purchasers to rescind their purchase agreements and recover their deposits.

Borden East River Realty LLC (“Developer”) sponsored a condominium development which would consist of 132 residential units, 26 roof terrace units, and 25...

A large franchisor has sought damages from a franchisee who continued to market itself as a franchise even after the franchisor terminated the franchise agreement.

Century 21 Real Estate LLC (“Franchisor”) operates a real estate brokerage service franchise system. The Franchisor provides its franchises support through resources and promotional materials, and also allows the...

A New York court has considered whether a broker had an obligation to assist an owner with another broker’s commission claims.

Barbara Faraone (“Owner”) owned a parcel of land that she decided to sell in late 2003. Allegedly, the Owner entered into an oral listing agreement with real estate brokerage Land Man Realty, Inc. (“Land Man”), allowing Land Man to...

A Michigan court has considered whether a real estate broker could collect a commission from a failed transaction.

Michael Rubick (“Seller”) owned a large parcel of land containing four separate and distinct land parcels. The front of the property contained an 80-acre lot and a 19-acre plot, with a farmhouse and barn on the smaller lot. The rear of the property contained 80...

A Missouri appellate court has considered whether a town’s requirement of a property inspection prior to advertising a property as “for sale” was constitutional.

Mark Scatizzi (“Broker”) is a licensed real estate broker who does business in the City of Bellefontaine Neighbors (“City”). The City has an ordinance (“Ordinance”) which...

A federal appellate court has considered whether a developer violated the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (“RESPA”) when it offered a buyer a discount on closing costs if the buyer used an affiliate of the developer.

John and Eleanor Yeatman (“Buyers”) agreed to purchase a home from D.R. Horton, Inc. (“Developer”). The Buyers financed their...

A Missouri court considers whether a lender had to disclose that the city had purchased a portion of the front yard in order to widen a road.

ABN AMRO Mortgage Group, Inc. (“Lender”) obtained a residential property through foreclosure after the prior owner had defaulted. Prior to the default, the city of Kansas City, Missouri (“City”) had purchased 30 feet of...

Massachusetts appellate court has considered whether a brokerage could be liable under the state’s unfair trade practices law because the brokerage did not ascertain the zoning for a property it had listed for sale.

In 1992, Richard Clasby (“Seller’) purchased a building which contained four separate apartments. The Seller decided to convert the building into three...

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