Representative Cases
Real Estate
- Claimant defrauded in real estate income property allegedly with 6 units where seller failed to disclose that of the 6 units only 5 were permitted under City of Gardena zoning restrictions. Seller owned, developed, and held property for close to 30 years, no other owner. Seller denied knowledge of any wrongdoing. Circumstantial evidence and evidence of lack of credibility of seller resulted in finding of fraudulent concealment of material facts. Evidence did not support any award of punitive damages. The issue of damages under Civil Code Section 3343 was a major component in this matter.
- The case was an arbitration pending lawsuit by a landlord of a single-family home rented out for the first time by an inexperienced homeowner/landlord. She hired a broker (the Defendant) to deal with the tenant. She (landlord) breached the property management agreement by not putting the broker on her property damage insurance. The tenant (not at the mediation because she refused to participate) caused severe damage to the home for which the broker was not factually or legally responsible for.
- Plaintiff was the estate of the owner of real property (residential) that was conveyed to an LLC set up as a loan source for funding the setting aside of a foreclosure initiated by the original lender, a major bank. Plaintiff was alleging fraud in the inducement, lack of consideration in the operating agreement and trying to cancel the deed.
