Question

Two neighbors owned summer homes adjacent to each other on the lake. After a week-long stay by the son of one of the property owners, the neighbor called the owner and said that his boat dock had been badly damaged and was told by another resident that the owner's son and some friends had gotten drunk and accidentally crashed their boat into his dock. The owner was surprised at the accusation because he was sure that if his son had caused the damages, he would have told him. However, he did not want to get into a dispute with his neighbor, so he told his neighbor that he would have the dock repaired and pay for the repairs if the neighbor agreed not to bring a claim against his son for the damage to the dock. The neighbor agreed, and the owner hired a local carpenter to do the work. Later, however, the owner discovered that his son did not damage the dock because the damages occurred after his son had returned to college.
Is the owner obligated to pay for the repairs?
A. No, because the owner never really believed that his son caused the damage.
B. No, because his son in fact did not cause the damage.
C. No, because the neighbor was wrong when he accused his son of causing the damage and it would be unfair to enforce an agreement when there was a mutual mistake of fact.
D. Yes

Answer 1

Answer:

D. Yes

Explanation:

The owner is obligated to pay for the repairs because there is already an agreement to do that and the man/promisor honestly believed that the claim by the promisee could be true and valid at the time the agreement even though the claim turned out false. The court will uphold the claim that he is liable to fix the dock.