Cengage Advantage Books: Fundamentals of Business Law 9th Edition by Roger LeRoy Miller

تمرين 23

BHP Land Services, Inc. v. Seymour
Superior Court of Connecticut, __ A.3d __ (2011).
FACTS Jean Seymour lived in Barkhamsted, Connecticut, but she also owned a house, a horse barn, and several acres of land in Enfield. Jean's daughter, Jennifer, lived on the Enfield property, which she called the RoundTuit Ranch. Jennifer boarded, trained, and sold horses on the ranch. Jean paid the property taxes and the mortgage but did not participate in the RoundTuit business. Jennifer did not pay rent, but she paid the costs of the business, including snow plowing and house repairs. Jennifer hired BHP Land Services, Inc., to remove tree stumps and grade two acres for $2,450 per acre. When the work was done, Jennifer paid the bill. The next year, she hired BHP to do similar work on another nine acres at the same price per acre. When Jennifer did not pay the bill, BHP filed a suit in a Connecticut state court against Jean, who responded that she had never authorized the work.
ISSUE Was BHP entitled to foreclose under a mechanic's lien even though it was the property owner's (Jean's) daughter who had hired BHP to do the work?
DECISION Yes. The court issued a judgment in BHP's favor for $26,250, "which was the... price for the work done." The court set the matter to be scheduled for a hearing to determine the terms of the foreclosure and its fees and costs.
REASON The court held that a contractor who renders services for the improvement of the land can place a mechanic's lien on real estate if the owner of the land-"or someone having authority"-has agreed to the services. The court reasoned that Jean had given Jennifer the "unfettered authority" to operate the ranch on the Enfield property "as she saw fit." This authority included overseeing improvements that enhanced the property to Jean's benefit, such as BHP's clearing work. The court noted that Jennifer and Jean had appeared before a local agency in regard to the clearing project and that Jean had represented to the agency that Jennifer could act as her agent. Thus, Jennifer had the authority to agree to BHP's work on the property without any further authorization from Jean.
FOR CRITICAL ANALYSIS-Legal Consideration When no actual contract exists, under what theory may a court step in to prevent a property owner from being unjustly enriched by the work, labor, or services of a contractor?