Wolfson v. Ocean Park Realty Corp.

YORK, J.

The appellant corporation, of which the individual defendants were officers and directors, was the owner of the Egyptian Ball Room at Ocean Park, and under date of December 26, 1926, said corporation leased said ballroom to the plaintiffs, who conducted same from that date until July 17, 1927, sustaining a loss of $11,348.59.

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The complaint alleges that A. L. Gore, one of the individual defendants, in order to induce the plaintiffs to lease said ballroom, represented to plaintiff Burnett Wolfson that said ballroom “was a profitable going business;” that-said ballroom had done an average weekly business sufficient to meet and defray all of the expenses incurred in the operation and upkeep thereof during the months of October, November, December, January, February and March of each year, and that during the month of April, the first two weeks of May and the last two weeks of September of each year, the ballroom had done an average business so as to show a net profit of approximately $500 a week; that during the months of June, July, August and the first two weeks of September and the last two weeks of May of each year, the said ballroom had done an average business of $2,500 per week.

The complaint also alleged that the plaintiffs discovered during the months of January and February, 1927, that the ballroom was operating at a loss and informed defendants of that fact, but that A. L. Gore for the purpose of deceiving plaintiffs represented that such loss was due to unfavorable weather conditions, and that said business had always shown a profit as soon as the weather conditions were favorable.

That on or about July 10, 1927, plaintiffs discovered that said ballroom, as operated by defendants prior to December 27, 1926, had been operated by said defendants at a loss and that at no time did said ballroom pay its expenses, and at no time did it show any profit; that said plaintiffs discovered that all of the statements and representations made by defendant A. L. Gore to plaintiff Burnett Wolfson were false and untrue in this, that said ballroom had never operated at a profit; that upon discovery of the fraud perpetrated upon them, to wit: July 10, 1927, plaintiffs tendered the premises back to defendants and demanded a return of the money lost by them in operating the ballroom during the period above mentioned. No question is raised by appellant concerning the amount or measure of damages given by the verdict.