Price v. Saade
Price v. Saade
Opinion of the Court
The defendant Jack Saade appeals from a judgment enforcing a settlement agreement between the defendants (Saade and the codefendants) and the plaintiff. On appeal, he argues that it was error for such a judgment to enter where an alleged breach of confidentiality relieved him from compliance. We affirm.
The plaintiff filed suit after Saade engaged in self-help eviction to oust the plaintiff from the property that the plaintiff had been renting from the codefendants.
Saade alleged that after the agreement in principle was signed, codefendant Chung S. Lee disclosed information from the mediation to Saade's lender, in spite of the understanding that everything discussed in mediation is to remain confidential. Based on this alleged behavior of Lee, Saade contended that he was not bound by the agreement in principle. The plaintiff responded by filing a motion to enforce the settlement agreement, which was allowed over Saade's objection.
"A settlement agreement is a contract and its enforceability is determined by applying general contract law." Sparrow v. Demonico,
Here, the settlement agreement is the end result of a mediation. The settlement agreement lays out exactly who has to pay, who will be paid, and how much is to be paid, along with provisions regarding mutual releases, confidentiality, and antidisparagement. All material terms are present and Saade does not argue otherwise.
To determine Saade's present intention to be bound,
The only reason Saade provided for refusing to sign the settlement agreement was his conclusory allegation regarding Lee's contact with his lender. Saade had the opportunity to substantiate this claim by placing evidence before the judge when opposing the motion to enforce the settlement agreement, yet he failed to do so. The judge therefore did not err or abuse her discretion in allowing the motion to enforce the settlement agreement.
Judgment affirmed.
As a result of a separate, unrelated action, the codefendants had conveyed the property to Saade; although the plaintiff's lease was with the codefendants, Saade owned the property.
The codefendants did not oppose the motion.
There is no dispute that the plaintiff and the codefendants intended to be bound by the settlement agreement.
As to Saade's remaining arguments, they "have not been overlooked. We find nothing in them that requires discussion." Commonwealth v. Domanski,
The plaintiff's request for appellate attorney's fees and double costs is denied.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.