Fulton v. Miller

Citations

• 254 Pa. 363
• 98 A. 1065
• 1916 Pa. LEXIS 735

Syllabus

<p>Contracts — Conditions precedent — Substantial performance — Acceptance of benefits.</p> <p>1. Although conditions precedent must be performed and a partial performance is not sufficient, still when a contract has been performed in a substantial part and the other party has voluntarily accepted and received the benefits of the part performance knowing that the contract was not being fully performed, the latter may thereby be precluded from relying upon the performance of the residue as a condition precedent to his liability to pay for what he has received, and may be compelled to rely upon his claim for damages in respect to the defective performance.</p> <p>2. In an action on a promissory note “conditioned upon the securing and delivery to the undersigned” of a certain “nine-foot vein of coal......and a portion of the......farm, together containing 258 acres......, together full and complete mining rights thereto, so as to make the coal saleable and marketable,” where it appeared that plaintiff had complied with a substantial part of the contract, and had caused the coal to be conveyed to defendant, that defendant had accepted and retained the benefit of plaintiff’s part performance, knowing that the contract had not been fully performed, the trial judge properly directed a verdict for plaintiff.</p>