Firm obtains summary judgment win in dispute over real estate purchase and sale agreement
Tyler Chapman and Matt Furman persuaded a Massachusetts Superior Court judge to award summary judgment to the seller under a real estate purchase and sale agreement based on the buyer’s bad faith breach.
The judge found that the buyer unlawfully failed to appear at the closing after baselessly claiming a title defect in a lack of access to a public way and an inability to obtain title insurance even though neither was true.
The buyer “asserted falsehoods to avoid closing on the property [and] offered entirely fraudulent representations concerning the easements and title insurance related to [the property],” the judge wrote in his decision.
As a consequence, the buyer did not just breach the purchase and sale agreement, but also breached its implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing and violated the Massachusetts unfair trade practices statute (Chapter 93A), according to the judge.
The Superior Court will assess damages in the case, which will include liquidated damages under the agreement, plus multiple damages, attorneys’ fees, and costs for the violation of Chapter 93A.