Update: Bernstein v. Bribriesco & Associates

Posted on January 19, 2011 by Liz Overton

Previously I discussed Bernstein v. Bribriesco & Associates, a case regarding the Iowa Wage Payment Collection Act that was pending before the Iowa Court of Appeals. I had the opportunity to listen to the oral arguments, but was not privy to all the facts. The case has been decided. 

I suggested that Bernstein should be entitled to liquidated damages despite the fact that Bribriesco has paid all wages prior to Bernstein filing suit. The Iowa Court of Appeals, apparently did not agree with my reasoning or Bernstein's reasoning. Rather, the Court held that liquidated damages are not available under chapter 91A in the absence of some unpaid wages. 

 

Take away:  Although I would never advise any of my clients to do this, the Court of Appeals seems to be giving its blessing for employers to hold an employee's paycheck until just before the employee files an action.  However, the employer better be good at guessing when the employee will file his action.

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Court of Appeals affirms Polk County decision in Boesen case

Posted on July 14, 2010 by Benjamin Clark

The Iowa Court of Appeals issued its ruling today in Freedom Financial Bank v. Estate of Edward Boesen et al.  The Court upheld the priority of Freedom Financial's purchase money mortgage which the late Edward Boesen used to buy a commercial property in Ankeny.  Citing century-old case law, the Court noted that prinicples of equity and fairness demand that the mortgage, which was used solely to purchase the property, be acknowledged. 

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Disclosures of Problems with Property in Residential Sales

Posted on August 2, 2009 by Matt Gardner
The Iowa Court of Appeals recently issued a ruling that should be a reminder to those trying to sell a house in Iowa. The evidence presented at trial indicated that the seller of a home had previous history of water standing on the lawn after rains. The seller had provided a seller's disclosure statement, pursuant to Iowa law, which requires a potential seller to list and disclose any potential problems, including "physical problems such as: settling, flooding, drainage, or grading problems" but failed to indicate the standing water problem. The Court indicated that the standard is not whether the seller believes that a characteristic is a problem, but whether the grading/drainage is a condition and important characteristic of the property. Accordingly, the Court found that the seller improperly failed to disclose the condition of the property to the buyer. For anyone looking to sell their property on their own, this is a reinforced reminder to disclose anything and everything to a potential buyer. Whether the seller believes that it is a problem does not matter. My advice to any of my clients selling property is to do disclose everything. Being subject to a lawsuit from a disgruntled purchaser is not a pleasant experience to go through. The safer course of action is to disclose any potential important conditions of the property so that a buyer is put on notice.
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