Contract date vs ratified/signed date

[glenn walker]

I have been in three lawsuits in California over the years on contractual issues on Real Estate. Textbook Books state unless both parties sign and date there is no contract. In real life at least in California in Court a Judge looks also at intent of parties and actions made. Example-my father met with a potential seller of a bank building, they negotiated a 10 year lease, with two 5 year options to extend it. Now it was not done on a contract form but Yellow Legal Pad and all on two pages. The owner walked out of the Bar and a week later we had the keys to the building.

Next the owner Sobered up a few days later later and decided he did not like the deal and sued my father and the Bank . His attorney cl;aimed there was no contract and it was never ratified just a 2 page legal pad with a hand written agreement. Our attorney argued it was ratified the minute the owner took the $15,000 cashiers check and cashed-deposited it in his bank account and he also gave my father the keys and moved stuff in the building.We won the case as ratification and contractual law also includes intent and actions of the parties.

MY POINT is we as appraisers only analyze a contract and if both parties did not sign it we state in our analyses the copy we have been given was not signed by both parties. We do not say it was not ratified. Only a court of law can determine ratification not the appraiser.

 

[ZZGAMAZZ]

I have been in three lawsuits in California over the years on contractual issues on Real Estate. Textbook Books state unless both parties sign and date there is no contract. In real life at least in California in Court a Judge looks also at intent of parties and actions made. Example-my father met with a potential seller of a bank building, they negotiated a 10 year lease, with two 5 year options to extend it. Now it was not done on a contract form but Yellow Legal Pad and all on two pages. The owner walked out of the Bar and a week later we had the keys to the building.

Next the owner Sobered up a few days later later and decided he did not like the deal and sued my father and the Bank . His attorney cl;aimed there was no contract and it was never ratified just a 2 page legal pad with a hand written agreement. Our attorney argued it was ratified the minute the owner took the $15,000 cashiers check and cashed-deposited it in his bank account and he also gave my father the keys and moved stuff in the building.We won the case as ratification and contractual law also includes intent and actions of the parties.

MY POINT is we as appraisers only analyze a contract and if both parties did not sign it we state in our analyses the copy we have been given was not signed by both parties. We do not say it was not ratified. Only a court of law can determine ratification not the appraiser.

Perhaps the most meaningful comments about a specific topic ever published on the AF.

 

[Mark K]

Very interesting. Seems somewhat unfair at present, although I guess that the Listing Agent wouldn't establish any unreasonable thresholds that might kill a pending deal.

The problem is with the buyers/buyer's agent. They come back with a wish list of repairs/upgrades and give the owner a short time frame to respond.

Failure to respond is considered acceptance.

Its a BS provision that never should have made it into the documents, but leave it to the fools at the realtor assoc. to include something like that.