Estoppel Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Estoppel - Essay Example If the other party makes a decision based on the untruthful second statement and a lawsuit ensues, they can claim an estoppel in court against the plaintiff. In order for the estoppel to be considered valid, however, the defendant needs to demonstrate damages stemming from the untruthful statement. For example, if a landlord tells a tenant that he or she only owes half of the monthly rent because of repairs, the tenant can reasonably treat that as a statement of fact. He or she may write a check for half of the normal monthly rent and assume he or she is in good standing. If the landlord later decides to sue the tenant for not paying the entire amount of the lease, the tenant may claim an estoppel in court. The landlord's verbal agreement to accept half payment should have been recognized as binding, even if the original lease was not changed. The tenant had a reasonable right to change his rent payments based on a perceived truth. An estoppel is generally a defensive move, not a first strike. The plaintiff in a case can claim a number of reasons why the defendant should honour a contract or pay damages, for example. The defence must demonstrate that the plaintiff's own statements go against established facts in order to claim an estoppel. There must also be evidence that the defendant based his actions strictly on the reliance of truth and that he suffered damages because of it. Enforcement of an estoppel is generally left up to the discretion of the individual judge hearing the case. TYPES OF ESTOPPEL Equitable estoppel A type of estoppel that bars a person from adopting a position in court those contradict his or her past statements or actions when that contradictory stance would be unfair to another person who relied on the original position. For example, if a landlord agrees to allow a tenant to pay the rent ten days late for six months, it would be unfair to allow the landlord to bring a court action in the fourth month to evict the tenant for being a week late with the rent. The landlord would be estopped from asserting his right to evict the tenant for late payment of rent. Estoppel by deed A type of estoppel that prevents a person from denying the truth of anything that he or she stated in a deed, especially regarding who has valid ownership of the property. For example, someone who grants a deed to real estate before he actually owns the property can't later go back and undo the sale for that reason if, say, the new owner strikes oil in the backyard. Estoppel by silence A type of estoppel that prevents a person from asserting something when she had both the duty and the opportunity to speak up earlier, and her silence put another person at a disadvantage. For example, Edwards' Roofing Company has the wrong address and begins ripping the roof from Betty's house by mistake. If Betty sees this but remains silent, she cannot wait until the new roof is installed and then refuse to pay, asserting that the work was done without her agreement. Promissory estoppel A type of estoppel that prevents a person who made a promise from reneging when someone else has reasonably relied on the promise and will suffer a loss if the promise is broken. For example, Forrest tells Antonio to go ahead and buy a boat without a motor, because he will sell Antonio an old boat motor at a very reasonable price. If Antonio relies on Forrest's