Wehen v. Lundgaard

WHITE, J.

During the year 1932 appellant owned and operated a dairy farm situate in Los Angeles County. On or

[612]

about September 1 of that year respondent’s assignor sold to appellant a Parker ice machine for the sum of $300. The transaction was evidenced by a written agreement under the terms of which appellant as buyer agreed to pay the purchase price in twenty monthly instalments of $15 each, with interest at eight per cent per annum. No payments whatever were made pursuant to the contract, and accordingly on May 20, 1934, the entire amount, and particularly the last payment under the contract, became due. On October 15, 1937, this action was commenced to enforce specific performance of the contract, resulting in judgment for plaintiff, and from which judgment this appeal was taken, coming to us upon the judgment roll alone.

Appellant urges that the superior court is without jurisdiction to specifically enforce a conditional sales agreement involving $300 principal, where the seller allowed more than five years to elapse from the date of the first default in payment of an instalment and when upon such date the seller was empowered under the terms of the contract to repossess the property or declare the entire amount of the contract due and sue therefor.

It is true, as contended by appellant, that in actions at law the jurisdiction of the superior court is limited to amounts in excess of $2,000, but it is equally true that if the action is one for equitable relief, then the superior court is clothed with jurisdiction.

(Fair View Farms Co.

v.

Superior Court,

123 Cal. App. 9 [10 Pac. (2d) 1011];

Tullis

v.

Title Guarantee etc. Co.,

11 Cal. App. (2d) 391 [54 Pac. (2d) 65].) But this is not a case in which equity will intervene. There is no dissent in the authorities from the proposition that equity will only enforce agreements, for the breach of which damages may be recovered, when an action for damages would be an inadequate remedy. In other words, specific performance will be decreed only when no other adequate relief is available to the plaintiff. Where the legal remedy of compensatory damages is sufficient to do complete justice between the parties, equity will not assume jurisdiction.