Conard v. Pennsylvania Railroad

Citations

• 214 Pa. 98
• 63 A. 424
• 1906 Pa. LEXIS 603

Syllabus

<p>Contract — Sale of chattels — -Executed and executory contracts.</p> <p>• An executed contract for the sale of a chattel vests the title at once, but an executory contract always leaves something to be done before the title to the property will vest in the purchaser. When, however, the act is performed, the sale is complete and the title to the property passes. And in cases where personal property of a certain description is purchased but not identified or selected from a mass of like property of the vendor, the contract is executory and incomplete and the title to it remains in the vendor. As soon, however, as the purchaser makes a selection of a particular part of the property in pursuance of his contract and his act is approved by the vendor, the sale is complete and the title of the vendor is divested.</p> <p>Where a person agrees to sell steel rails of a certain quantity and quality “conditioned upon the rails being first inspected” by the vendee, and accepted as fit for his work, a refusal by the vendor to permit the vendee to inspect the rails, or to furnish rails for an inspection, is a breach of the contract, for which the vendor will be liable. If in such a case, the evidence for the vendor is in effect that he submitted for inspection rails of the quantity and quality mentioned in the contract, but that the inspector refused to inspect them, and selected other rails not offered by the vendor, while the evidence for the vendee is in effect that he inspected and selected rails of the kind and quality mentioned in the contract, and that the vendor refused to deliver them, the case, on such conflicting testimony, is for the jury.</p>