Help for Legal Precedence

elko2



Joined: 24/07/2007
Posts: 4400

Message Posted:
31/10/2010 23:01

If a sale contract states that the property is mortgage free and it is not true, is the director who signed the contract on behalf of the vendor personally liable for misrepresentation? Can you point me in the direction of such a precedence please?

Thank you.

ismet

deputydawg


Joined: 30/03/2010
Posts: 1727

Message Posted:
01/11/2010 00:31

elko 2, I certainly cannot, but I sincerely hope you learn of one and it avoids being distinguished if utilised

Tenakoutou



Joined: 27/07/2009
Posts: 4110

Message Posted:
01/11/2010 08:42

elko2/Msg 1:



'Misrepresentation' = FRAUD = a civil matter in TRNC - not a matter for the police.



All litigation costs would accrue to the Plaintiff - would they not?



In such circumstances, how much is the charge for initiating a court case, nowadays?



How long would such a case, on average, take to resolve through the TRNC court system?



The victim of this 'scam' is the final and total loser.



Finally, how is it that the 'Tapu Office' [Land Registry Dept.] allows the contract to be registered [even if notarised], when it has been recorded that an encumbrance has been registered on a property prior to sale?



Should the buyer have the option of proceeding with the purchase, or having the contract declared null and void and be entitled reimbursement of all monies paid?



Petez quoted yesterday that 'the buyer should have done his homework', irrespective of the fact that the advocate clearly hasn't - 'No Duty of Care'!



What is your opinion, please, 'elko2'?

elko2



Joined: 24/07/2007
Posts: 4400

Message Posted:
01/11/2010 10:14

In this particular case the buyer has the posession of the property but not the title deeds in his name although each property ahs a separate title deed now. He is fortuante enough to have the electricity in his own name too. There were five mortgages on the whole complex when the contract was signed but the contract stated that there were non. Now we are in the process of finding out the following:

1. The advocate supplied a copy of the Regsitration of the contract but there is no mention of these mortgages on it. How come? Is the registration paper bogus?



2. Who took out the mortgages and what is the liability at the moment?



Ten,

If you make a false statement and thus obtain some money or benefit, it may be a ctriminal offence depending on circumstances. For instance if you obtain money for an air conditioner but you never install it it is a criminal offence. If you state taht you have a child who needs an urgent operation and obtain money and it is not true, it is not a criminal offence in my view but I am not asserting this with certainty.

ismet

Hector


Joined: 26/08/2008
Posts: 2352

Message Posted:
01/11/2010 12:49

Ismet

The circumstances you quote are indeed criminal offences. Unfortunately it seems to me that the TRNC police cannot or will not deal with anything that is remotely fraud related. Perhaps they know that once they do, it would open a whole can of worms.

elko2



Joined: 24/07/2007
Posts: 4400

Message Posted:
01/11/2010 14:36

Hector,

I regard it as fraud and hence the director must be personally liable. This is my line of thinking and I will visit the High Court library next Wednesday, so I hope to find some authority there. It would be nice though if somebody could point me to a High Court decision of England and Wales.



ismet

deputydawg


Joined: 30/03/2010
Posts: 1727

Message Posted:
01/11/2010 14:51

Elko, have you goggled "UK lawtell" which keeps up to date with case law ?. If your wife knows anyone on the role in UK (litigation) I am sure they can quickly give you an answer.

deputydawg


Joined: 30/03/2010
Posts: 1727

Message Posted:
01/11/2010 14:53

Oops sorry. Roll not role.

cluffy


Joined: 01/11/2010
Posts: 1

Message Posted:
02/11/2010 05:32

We bought a piece of land in North Cyprus, seven years ago. We have the sale in writing and approved by the land office but, on our first visit back to Cyprus since we bought the land, we are told that we should have signed a transfer document. Is this true?

Groucho



Joined: 26/04/2008
Posts: 7993

Message Posted:
02/11/2010 08:09

Ismet,



It is certainly UK contract law that any party to a contract who signs it knowing there are falsehoods in it renders the contract null and void. The spirit of an enforceable contract is that both parties are declaring everything that is of a material nature regarding the subject matter of the contract... Deliberately hiding some material fact that hides the real value of the subject is fraud... Like pretending a bit of glass is a diamond...



Proving that the signatory to the contract was deliberately withholding relevant information would be the nub of the case.

pollymarples


Joined: 08/08/2010
Posts: 1778

Message Posted:
02/11/2010 08:22

Oh yes Elko, I can, I will e mail you privately.

elko2



Joined: 24/07/2007
Posts: 4400

Message Posted:
02/11/2010 13:08

msg. 10, Groucho, they did not hide anything, they declared openly in the contract that the property was free of any encumbrances. So there is no doubt that the contract can be void but so what? They are insolvent as a company. Can the director be held responsible in person? Some may argue that the buyer could easily find out if this claim was true or not, hence the buyer also acted irresponsibly by not asking for a search before buying.



Polly,

Thanks for your offer, I look forward to it.

ismet

Brinsley


Joined: 04/04/2009
Posts: 6858

Message Posted:
02/11/2010 13:36

Ismet

You could try the British Consulate Library in Nicosia (TRNC side) for law books and hunt for case law. The library has moved from the main Consulate building and all I know is that it's nearby.



Richard

Groucho



Joined: 26/04/2008
Posts: 7993

Message Posted:
02/11/2010 13:39

Ismet



Ah ha, but did they hide something? Did they hide the fact that they knew there were encumbrances? If they did and you can prove they did then as a signatory to the contract they have indeed committed a fraud and could be held personally responsible. If a person's signature on a legal contract means anything it means that.



'I declare that to the best of my knowledge... etc. etc.' In short if, at the point of signing , they knew it was a lie then they are committing a fraud. A deliberate act to deceive for pecuniary advantage to the detriment of the other party to the contract.

elko2



Joined: 24/07/2007
Posts: 4400

Message Posted:
03/11/2010 14:42

Groucho,

Further to what I wrote in msg. 12 above, our contract law (Chapter 149, clause 19) has such an stipulation:

"19(3) If such a consent was caused by misrepresentation or by silence, fraudulent within the meaning of section 17, the contract, nevertheless, is not voidable, if the party whose consent was so caused had the means of discovering the truth with ordinary diligence."



Indeed if the buyer's advocate had acted diligently the end result would have been totally different. So, under these circumstances, can the director be held responsible in person?

ismet