Campbell v. Northwest Eckington Improvement Co.
Campbell v. Northwest Eckington Improvement Co.
Opinion of the Court
delivered the opinion of the Court:
As to the item of $481.81, we agree with the view of the learned trial justice. This item benefited the complainants in no way, and we do not think its repayment was contemplated by the October contract.
We also agree with the learned trial justice that the defendant is not entitled to be heard on the exceptions filed to the second report. Since every exception might have been filed upon the submission of the first report and disposed of at the first hearing, the defendant, by his failure then to act, waived his rights in the premises.
At the time the October contract was entered into the imminence of the railroad improvements had very favorably affected the complainants’ land, and, as found in our prior -opinion, “the apprehension of its loss by foreclosure was great
The decree will therefore be affirmed, with costs.
Affirmed.
An application by the appellant for the allowance of an appeal to the Supreme Court of the United States was allowed.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- CAMPBELL v. NORTHWEST ECKINGTON IMPROVEMENT COMPANY
- Status
- Published
- Syllabus
- Contracts; Accounting; References; Objections and Exceptions. 1. Northwest Eelcington Improv. Co. v. Campbell, 28 App. D. C. 483, referred to. 2. Where a contract between parties engaged in the exploitation and improvement of land superseded a former contract and provided that one of the parties, a builder and real-estate speculator, was to have credit for advances made by him under the abandoned contract, which he was unable to carry out, it was held that in a final accounting between the parties he was not entitled to credit for money advanced for organizing a company to take over the land under the first contract, where such expenditure did not enhance the value of the property or benefit the other parties in any way. 3. Where every exception filed by one of the parties to an equity suit to a report of the auditor restating an account could have been made to the first report and disposed of at the first hearing, the failure of such party then to act constitutes a waiver of his rights in the premises. 4. Where a builder and real-estate speculator under contracts with the owner of real estate was to receive a one-third interest in the land, for services performed in its improvement and sale, and he only partially performed his obligation, a decree in a suit in equity against him by the owner was affirmed which declared that (1) an absolute deed to him of a one-third interest in all of the land was intended only to secure him in his share of the profits when he should perform his agreement to build houses and make sales; (2) that as to the land upon which ten houses were built he was entitled to an absolute one-third interest; (3) that the contracts between the parties should be canceled; and (4) that the builder should reconvey to the other party the unimproved portion of the land, subject to any amount due him on a final settlement being paid or secured, and to his being indemnified against loss by reason of his assumption of any encumbrances thereon. 5. The evidence held to warrant a decree canceling certain agreements between the parties relating to building operations, and requiring defendant to reconvey to complainants an undivided one-third interest in certain lands which had previously been conveyed to him by complainants;