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88 Wis. 622

Cohn v. Plumer

Wisconsin Supreme Court

Decided November 13, 1894

Wisconsin Supreme Court · decided 1894-11-13

This was an action upon quantum meruit for the value of granite furnished by plaintiffs for the building of defendant’s house. The defense was that the granite was furnished under an entire contract to furnish all the granite for the house, according to the plans and specifications, for $10,000, and that the plaintiffs failed to furnish a large portion of the granite.

Relies on Lawrence v. Milwaukee, Lake Shore & Western Railway Co.

Good law ✅— No negative treatment on recordhow we know

Decided 1894-11-13

How this case has been cited

Cited by 5 later decisions — most recently February 1943

5 state decisions

20189419001910192019301940decided

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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Winslow, J.

¶1If there was a complete contract made by the plaintiffs at the time of the meeting in the architect’s office, to furnish all the granite required for the building, according to' the plans and specifications, for a specified sum, then the plaintiffs cannot recover upon quantum meruit, because it is admitted that they failed to perform such contract. There was ample evidence to sustain the finding of the jury that such a contract was made. In fact, the testimony of Colin himself tends very strongly to substantiate the claim, and the fact that the plaintiffs went to work getting out the stone and shipping it, immediately after the interview, is very significant. The fact that it was expected that a written contract would afterwards be signed, embodying the terms of the oral contract, does not prevent the oral contract from taking effect. Lawrence v. M., L. S. & W. R. Co. 84 Wis. 433. The jury, upon sufficient evidence and under correct instructions, have found that the contract claimed by defendant was made.

¶2We see no defect in the special verdict. It fairly covers all the issues in the case. No other questions were requested by the plaintiffs, nor do we see any good ground for criticism of the first question. It fairly submits the pivotal question in the case to the jury. There seems to have been evidence to justify the jury in finding, in answer to the fourth question, that the reasonable value of the extras furnished was but $23.75. .

¶3The case was fairly tried and submitted, and we have found no error.

¶4By the Court.— Judgment affirmed.

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