McAlester v. Landers

Citations

• 70 Cal. 79
• 11 P. 505
• 1886 Cal. LEXIS 729

Syllabus

<p>Lease—Quiet Enjoyment—Covenant of Title and Right to Convey — Breach of. •— A lease with an express covenant for quiet enjoyment implies a covenant that the lessor has title to the property leased, and power and right to convey it; and such implied covenant is immediately broken if the lessor has made a prior lease of part of the demised premises, which is still outstanding when the subsequent lease is executed.</p> <p>Id. —Eviction —Dispossession not Necessary. —A covenant for quiet enjoyment in a lease is not broken without an eviction of the lessee, either actual or constructive. To constitute an eviction, the lessee need not be actually dispossessed.</p> <p>Id. —Recovery in Trespass against Lessee. —A recovery in an action of trespass brought by a prior lessee against a subsequent lessee of the same land is a sufficient eviction to constitute a breach of the covenant for quiet enjoyment contained in the subsequent lease, although the action was not commenced until after the expiration of the prior lease.</p> <p>Id. — Measure of Damages. — In such a case, the detriment caused by the breach of the covenant cannot be less than the amount of the judgment for damages and costs recovered against the covenantee.</p> <p>Id.—Action for Rent — Lessee may Recoup Damages — Counterclaim. —When damages have been sustained by a lessee on account of the breach of a covenant in the lease by the lessor, if an action for rent is brought, the lessee may elect to recoup his damages from the rent, or bring a separate action therefor; and the fact that the lessee has paid the rent for the greater part of the term will not deprive him of the right to recover his damages for the entire term by way of counterclaim.</p> <p>Id. —Payment of Rent— Exoneration of Guarantor. —A guarantor for the payment of the rent reserved in a lease is exonerated from liability on his guaranty if the lessor has, by the breach of a covenant in the lease, caused damages to the lessee equal to the amount of