Samantha Smith decides to open a new vegan caf called Veganese. Veganese will specialize in serving a variety of dishes that use jackfruit as a meat substitute. Jackfruit is a tropical fruit native to India; it takes the flavor of other ingredients and shreds like pulled pork. Because it is not produced locally, Samantha has worked out an agreement with a broker to source the jackfruit from the two major orchards in India producing the jackfruit.

Samantha finds the ideal vacant commercial spot for her caf and starts negotiations with the landlord, Johnny Jones, for an 18-month lease for her caf at $3,500 per month. Because the restaurant business requires numerousseveral federal, state, and local permits and licenses before it can be opened, Johnny agrees with Samantha that her lease will not commence until 30 days after the permits are granted.Shortly thereafter, the lease agreement is executed by both parties with all the standard clauses including "boilerplate" clauses that state "this Agreement makes up the entire contract between the parties and supersedes any prior written or oral discussions" and "Lessee shall not assign this contract without the prior written consent of Landlord." The clause regarding the delay in the lease until the permits are granted is inadvertently left out of the agreement.

One month after the lease is signed, Samantha's broker telephones her and tells her the jackfruit farmers have informed him that the local demand for the jackfruit has skyrocketed and that it would be cost-prohibitive for them to stay in the agreement with Samantha. Samantha is devastated and telephones Johnny to terminate the lease. Johnny refuses and states Samantha will be responsible for the whole 18-months of the lease.

Feeling stressed and full of anxiety, Samantha contacts good friend and yoga instructor Betty Browning for some advice. Betty offers to take over the lease for Samantha to open a hot yoga studio. Without notice to Johnny, Samantha agrees and assigns the lease to Betty in a signed writing. Betty immediately hires a contractor and begins planning and buying materials for the hot yoga studio.

In the meantime, Johnny finds another tenant for the spot, Harvey Hamil, an insurance agent, who takes possession of the space. When Betty arrives a few weeks later with her contractor to take measurements for her yoga room, she is upset to find the space is taken. She has already spent $3,500 on the planning and owes her contractor $1,500. She contacts her lawyer who advises her to sue Samantha and Johnny for breach of contract and specific performance. After receiving a demand letter from Betty's lawyer, Johnny is outraged and after consulting his lawyer, sues Samantha for breach of contract.

On the basis of these facts:

1. What is the likelihood of the success of Johnny's claim against Samantha? Discuss.
2. Does Betty have a cause of action against Samantha or Johnny for breach of contract? Is the remedy of specific performance available to Betty? Discuss.