This was a sale of an absolute reversion in a trust fund. The particulars stated that: ‘Estate duty will be payable on the death of the annuitant who is believed to have no aggregable estate’ and the name of the solicitors who prepared the particulars was given. The solicitors made the statement of belief honestly but they had no reasonable grounds for so believing. The solicitors were better equipped with information or the means of information than the purchaser.
Held: A statement that a vendor is not aware of a defect in title carries with it an implied representation that he has taken reasonable steps to ascertain whether any exists. The statement of belief not merely implied that the solicitors held that belief, but also by implication that the solicitors knew facts which justified their opinion; that they had reasonable grounds for their belief.
Lord Evershed MR said: ‘a statement of opinion is always to this extent a statement of fact, that it is an assertion that the vendor does actually hold the opinion which he states.’
Judges:
Lord Evershed MR, Romer LJ, Ormerod LJ
Citations:
[1958] Ch 636, [1958] 2 WLR 647, [1958] 2 All ER 79
Jurisdiction:
England and Wales
Citing:
Applied – Smith v London and House Property Corporation CA 1884
Bowen LJ said: ‘In considering whether there was a misrepresentation, I will first deal with the argument that the particulars only contain a statement of opinion about the tenant. It is material to observe that it is often fallaciously assumed that . .
Cited by:
Cited – William Sindall Plc v Cambridgeshire County Council CA 21-May-1993
Land was bought for development, but the purchaser later discovered a sewage pipe which very substantially limited its development potential. The existence of the pipe had not been disclosed on the sale, being unknown to the seller.
Held: . .
Cited – Spice Girls Ltd v Aprilia World Service Bv ChD 24-Feb-2000
Disclosure Duties on those entering into contract
The claimants worked together as a five girl pop group. The defendants had signed a sponsorship agreement, but now resisted payment saying that one of the five, Geri, had given notice to leave the group, substantially changing what had been . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Land, Contract
Leading Case
Updated: 28 January 2022; Ref: scu.185663
