101 MONUMENT ROAD, INC., APPELLANT,
v.
DELTA PROPERTY MANAGEMENT, INC., APPELLEE

Fla. 4th DCA | 2008-11-05
No. 4D07-3678
KLEIN and STEVENSON, JJ., concur.
993 So. 2d 181 Florida District Court of Appeal, Fourth District (2008) Positive Treatment
Cited by 4 cases

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Synopsis

Monument Road, Inc. appeals a judgment awarding damages for breach of an oral agreement to transfer commercial properties and return extracted equity. The court affirmed, holding that the oral contract for conveyance of land was enforceable because Delta fully performed by transferring the properties, thereby removing the agreement from the statute of frauds.


Holding

The oral agreement is enforceable because Delta's full performance in transferring the four properties removes the contract from the purview of the statute of frauds. The jury's award of monetary damages against Monument for breach is proper and supported by competent and substantial evidence.


Headnotes

[1] An oral agreement for the conveyance of land is generally barred by the statute of frauds.

[2] Full performance by one party to an oral contract removes the agreement from the purview of the statute of frauds.

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Key Quotes

“an oral contract for the conveyance of land is barred by the statute of frauds. § 725.01, Fla. Stat. (2007). However, Delta overcame Monument's affirmative defense as full performance by one party to the contract works to remove an oral agreement from the purview of the statute of frauds.”

Establishes the general rule and the exception allowing enforcement of oral land contracts when one party fully performs

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Facts & Procedural History

In 2000, Delta's owners (the Bartsocases) and Gus Boulis, owner of Monument, agreed orally that Delta would transfer four Jacksonville commercial prop…

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Opinion of the Court
POLEN, J.

POLEN, J.

Appellant, 101 Monument Road, Inc. (“Monument”), timely appeals a final judgment entered in favor of Delta Property Management, Inc. (“Delta”) and all orders subsumed within that judgment. For the reasons explained below, we affirm.

A longstanding relationship existed between Delta’s owners, Gus and Kiki Bart-socas, and Gus Boulis, the former owner of Monument. In 2000, the friends contemplated pursuing investment opportunities in Europe, but Bartsocas lacked enough capital to finance the move. The Bartso-cases owned four commercial properties in the Jacksonville area through Delta. The Bartsocases claimed they had orally agreed on behalf of Delta to transfer the four properties to Boulis’s corporation, Monument, so Boulis could refinance the properties and extract the equity therefrom. Then, Monument would transfer the equity to Delta so the parties could pursue ventures in Europe. Pursuant to the oral agreement, Delta transferred the properties to Monument in late 2000. Boulis died suddenly in early 2001. Following his untimely death, the Bartsocases attempted to no avail to obtain the equity or reacquire the properties from Monument.

Consequently, Delta filed a complaint against Monument asserting breach of an oral agreement and seeking either rescission1 or damages. Monument asserted twelve affirmative defenses including the statute of frauds. Following trial, the jury concluded that Monument breached its oral agreement with Delta and awarded monetary damages. This court finds competent and substantial evidence to support the jury’s verdict.

We are satisfied for the purposes of this appeal that the only contract at issue dealt with Delta’s conveyance of the four properties to Monument and the intent of the decedent through Monument to convey equity back to Delta once he secured it. Thus, Delta fully performed by transferring the four properties to Monument.

Generally, an oral contract for the conveyance of land is barred by the statute of frauds. § 725.01, Fla. Stat. (2007). However, Delta overcame Monument’s affirmative defense as full performance by one party to the contract works to remove an oral agreement from the purview of the statute of frauds. See Brodie v. All Corp. of USA 876 So. 2d 577, 579 (Fla. 4th DCA 2004). Thus, the oral agreement between the parties is enforceable, and the award of monetary damages against Monument for breach is proper. As to the remaining arguments, we are unpersuaded and affirm.

KLEIN and STEVENSON, JJ., concur. . Immediately prior to oral argument on this appeal, the parties advised the court the properties were sold in bankruptcy proceedings, and the cross-appeal regarding rescission was moot.


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Citator

Cited By

  • Nicolaos Terzis v. Pompano Paint & Body Repair, Inc., 127 So. 3d 592 (Fla. 4th DCA 2012)
    …39, 1143 (Fla. 4th DCA 2008) (citation and quotations omitted). Moreover, “full performance by one party to the contract works to remove an oral agreement from the purview of the statute of frauds.” 101 Monument Rd., Inc. v. Delta Prop. Mgmt., Inc., 993 So. 2d 181, 182 (Fla. 4th DCA 2008) (citation omitted). Here, the plaintiffs third amended complaint did not allege the parties agreed on any time for the complete performance of the oral contract or that the parties intended that it should extend for a longe…
  • Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. v. Richards, 226 So. 3d 920 (Fla. 4th DCA 2017)
    …nt & Body Repair, Inc., 127 So. 3d 592, 595 (Fla. 4th DCA 2012) (“full performance by one party to the contract works to remove an oral agreement from the purview of the statute of frauds”) (quoting 101 Monument Rd., Inc. v. Delta Prop. Mgmt., Inc., 993 So. 2d 181, 182 (Fla. 4th DCA 2008)). By contrast, credit-agreement statutes, referred to in Florida as the Banking Statute of Frauds, are a relatively new creation. They were enacted by many states in the mid-1980’s to address a surge in lawsuits brought by…

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