Legal Malpractice

Convoluted NJ Real Estate and Legal Malpractice Case

By (Andrew Lavoott Bluestone)

This New Jersey real estate case makes little sense, unless you read it as envy transformed into litigation.  Plaintiff-seller decides to sell 6 lots for $ 2,000,000.  Everyone follows the contract of sale, which provided for interim payments, penalty payments, and no assignments.

SUPERIOR COURT OF NEW JERSEY APPELLATE DIVISION

MARIO ARGENZIANO and MARAGEN CORPORATION, Plaintiffs-Appellants, v. THOMAS YACCARINO, ATLANTIC GROUP REALTY, BY THE SEA REAL ESTATE, LLC, WILLIAM WEBBER, ANDREW BOECKEL, LIBERTY CIRCLE LLC, TROUTMAN PORT, LLC and JOSEPH MEEHAN,

In the meantime, buyer finds customers who are willing to pay $ 2.5 million for the 6 lots, and arranges to flip them at closing.  Plaintiff is paid its contract price, and when it finds out that buyer found a way to make a profit, sues.   The court found: "With respect to defendant Meehan, plaintiffs' claim was that the attorney breached a duty of care owed to plaintiffs by advising them to grant a six-month extension to buyers and thereby caused plaintiffs to lose an opportunity to retain the property and its appreciated value. Although plaintiffs produced an affidavit of merit, they did not provide an expert report or request an adjournment of the summary judgment motion to permit them to secure one. Thus, they did not have evidence to establish that the attorney breached a duty of care."

Full post as published by New York Attorney Malpractice Blog on April 16, 2008 (boomark / email).