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114 Mass. 16

Grace v. Denison

Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court

Decided November 15, 1873

Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court · decided 1873-11-15

Bill in equity for specific performance, alleging that the defendant, being seised of a parcel of land, and the house thereon, situated on Hayward Place, in Boston, sold it to the plaintiff for $25,000 ; $50 to be paid down, $4,950 to be paid on the delivery of the deed, and $20,000, bearing five per cent, interest, to remain upon a mortgage in the usual form.

Good law ✅— No negative treatment on recordhow we know

Decided 1873-11-15

How this case has been cited

Cited by 12 later decisions — most recently April 1971

1 district · 11 state decisions

3018731880189019001910192019301940195019601970decided

Later decisions citing this case, by decade. The current decade is in progress, and our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so the latest bars are undercounted — not a real decline.

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Wells, J.

¶1The memorandum of agreement indicates that a part of the purchase money was agreed to be secured by mortgage of the premises to be conveyed. But it does not disclose nor furnish any means for the court to ascertain what part or amount is to remain upon mortgage, and what paid in cash upon delivery of the deed. The statute of frauds does not permit such % contract to be enforced without a memorandum of it in writing, signed by the party to be charged. The court cannot therefore go outside of this writing to ascertain what the real agreement of the parties was in this particular. The writing being incomplete in one of its essential terms, and the court having no means to which it can lawfully resort to supply the defect, specific performance must fail. Fry on Specific Performance, §§ 221, 222 & note 7. Browne on St. Frauds, §§ 376, 381. Boston & Maine Railroad v. Babcock, 3 Cush. 228, 232.

¶2Demurrer sustained.

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