Hetfield v. Willey

Citations

• 105 Ill. 286
• 1882 Ill. LEXIS 252

Syllabus

<p>1. Decree-for payment of money must be according to contract. On a bill for the specific performance of a contract, bearing elate July 6, 1880, for the payment of money, payable in one and two years from its date, with interest, it is error to decree its payment in one and two years from the first day of August, 1880. Should the contract be enforced at all, it must he done as the parties made it.</p> <p>2. Specific performance—matter of legal discretion. An application for the specific performance of a contract is within the sound legal discretion of the court, which is always controlled by the equitable circumstances of the case, and not by the mere caprice of the chancellor.</p> <p>3. Same—character of contract enforceable. Before a court of equity will compel the specific performance of a contract, it must appear that it was founded on a good and valuable consideration, and is reasonable, fair and just in all its parts. If the contract is not fair and just, or its enforcement specifically will he oppressive, or work a hardship, or is inequitable, it will not be so enforced. A court of equity is not bound to enforce every contract, though legal, and there be no sufficient reason for annulling the same.</p> <p>4. Where one partner sold his interest in the firm to another for a sum to be paid in installments, a part in a few days and the balance in one and two years, for which two last installments the purchaser was to give Ms notes, secured by mortgage on real estate, with interest, and it appeared that the vendor concealed the fact that the firm was indebted largely in local debts not appearing upon the firm books, so that the assets of the firm were not nearly so valuable as the purchaser supposed them to be, the account of such indebtedness being kept in a private book of one of the partners, of which the purchaser had no notice, the contract will not be specifically enforced at the suit of the vendor, notwithstanding some delay on the part of the purchaser b