Critical Legal Thinking Case 5.1

Unilateral Mistake When she died, Mrs. Chaney left behind a house in Annapolis, Maryland. The representative of her estate listed the property for sale with a real estate broker, stating the property was ap-proximately 15,650 square feet. Drs. Steele and Faust made an offer of $300,000 for the property, which was accepted by the estate. A contract for the sale of the property was signed by all the parties. When a subsequent survey (done before the deed was transferred) showed the property had an area of 22,047 square feet, the estate requested that the buyers pay more money for the property. When the estate refused to transfer the property to the buyers, they sued for specific performance. Can the estate rescind the contract? Steele v. Goettee, 542 A.2d 847 (Md. 1988).

Critical Legal Thinking Case 5.3 Mutual Mistake

Ron Boskett, a part-time coin dealer, purchased a dime purport-edly minted in 1916 at the Denver Mint; he paid nearly $450. The fact that the "D" on the coin signified Denver mintage made the coin rare and valuable. Boskett sold the coin to Beachcomber Coins, Inc. (Beachcomber), a retail coin dealer, for $500. A principal of Beachcomber examined the coin for 15 to 45 minutes prior to its purchase. Soon thereafter, Beachcomber received an offer of $700 for the coin, subject to certification of its genuineness by the American Numismatic Society. When this organization labeled the coin counterfeit, Beachcomber sued Boskett to rescind the purchase of the coin. Can Beachcomber rescind the contract? Beachcomber Coins, Inc. v. Boskett, 400 A.2d 78 (N.J. Sup. Ct. App. Div. 1979).