Bunck v. McAulay

Citations

• 84 Wash. 473
• 147 P. 33

Syllabus

<p>Fraud — Measure of Damages — Evidence. In an action to recover damages for fraudulent representations by the vendor in the sale of a hotel lease and furniture for $18,500, the value of the property sold at the time of sale, as bearing on the measure of damages, was a question for the jury, where there was evidence which tended to show that the furniture, if new, would be worth about $8,500, but was worth much less at the time owing to its condition, that the lease extended for something over a year, and that there was no profit in the business, which was a losing venture at the time the sale was made.</p> <p>Same — Fraudulent Representations — Curing Erroneous Instructions. In an action for false representations, an instruction allowing recovery if the plaintiffs relied thereupon “or were expected so to do” in connection with an instruction just preceding it explicitly defining defendants’ liability as dependent on representations made to plaintiffs “with intent to deceive them and to induce them to rely thereupon, and that plaintiffs did in fact rely thereon and were damaged;” and other instructions to the effect that fraud will not be presumed, etc., taken as a whole, sufficiently states the law with reference to the necessity of plaintiffs’ reliance upon the representations.</p> <p>Trial — Instructions—Comment on the Facts — Withdrawal of Issues. A charge to the jury stating that “defendants having made no counterclaim or charge,” and withdrawing certain evidence thereon, etc., is not prejudicial as a comment on the facts or as withdrawing from the jury defendants’ counterclaim or offset, when in fact no counterclaim was pleaded.</p> <p>Pleading — Answer — General Issue — Counterclaim. It is not error to sustain a demurrer to an answer setting up affirmative matter admissible under the general denial, but which might have been properly pleaded as a counterclaim.</p> <p>Fraud — Fraudulent Representations — Measure of Damages— Instructions. It is proper to instr