Download Specimen Complaint for Slander of Title – Tort Seeking Monetary

Specimen Complaint for Slander of Title – Tort Seeking Monetary Damages1
[Case Caption – Superior Court]
COMPLAINT
1. Plaintiff resides at 3 Elm Street, Utopia, MA.
2. Defendant resides at 7 Maple Avenue, Utopia, MA.
3. Plaintiff purchased a certain parcel of land together with the building and other
improvements thereon, now known as and numbered 3 on Elm Street in Utopia, Nulluslocus
County, Massachusetts (“the Property”) on September 16, 2001. A copy of the deed to
Plaintiff recorded with Nulluslocus County Registry of Deeds (“said Deeds”) in Book 3648,
Page 552, is attached hereto as Exhibit A.
4. On May 5, 2005, Plaintiff started negotiating with a prospective purchaser for the sale of
the Property.
5. On May 15, 2005, the prospective purchaser advised Plaintiff that a title search of the
Property revealed an affidavit filed under M.G.L. c. 183, §5B, a copy of which is attached
hereto as Exhibit B (“the Affidavit”), which stated that the record title to the Property was
subject to an option to purchase the Property running to one Frank Smith, which Affidavit
was signed by Defendant and because of said option set forth in the Affidavit, the prospective
purchaser declined to sign a purchase and sale agreement for the Property with the Plaintiff.
6. The Affidavit so recorded contained false information in that Plaintiff never granted an
option to purchase the Property to Frank Smith or to anyone else.
7. The statements in the Affidavit so made by Defendant were false and were known by
Defendant to be false and were made maliciously for the purpose of preventing the execution
of the purchase and sale agreement for the Propperty between Plaintiff and the prospective
purchaser, and to thereby cause harm to Plaintiff.
8. Plaintiff was unable to find another purchaser for the Property until August 4, 2005, when
Plaintiff sold the Property for $498,000, being a substantially lesser amount than that which
the prospective purchaser would have paid.
Wherefore Plaintiff demands judgment against Defendant for damages and costs.
[Signature]
[Date]
(5-5-08)
REBA Form No.53
© Real Estate Bar Association for Massachusetts
(5-5-08)
Notes and Comments
1
As stated in 37 Mass Practice Tort Law (3d ed) by Nolan and Sartorio at § 7.16. “The elements of the tort which
can be plucked from the few decided cases are a false statement, either written or oral, published with malice,
disparaging the plaintiff's property and resulting in special damage.” As set forth in Restatement (Second) of Torts,
§ 623A “One who publishes a false statement harmful to the interests of another is subject to liability for pecuniary
loss resulting to the other if (a) he intends for publication of the statement to result in harm to the interests of the
other having pecuniary value, or either recognize that it is likely to do so, and (b) he knows that the statement is
false or acts in reckless disregard of its truth or falsity.” However, the Institute takes no position on the question of:
(1) Whether, instead of showing the publisher's knowledge or reckless disregard of the falsity of the
statement, as indicated in Clause (b), the other may recover by showing that the publisher had either
(a) a motive of ill will toward him, or
(b) An intent to interfere in an unprivileged manner with his interests; or
(2) Whether either of these alternate bases, if not alone sufficient, would be made sufficient by being
combined with a showing of negligence regarding the truth or falsity of the statement.
And § 624 of the Restatement provides “The rules on liability for the publication of an injurious falsehood
stated in § 623A apply to the publication of a false statement disparaging another's property rights in land, chattels
or intangible things, that the publisher should recognize as likely to result in pecuniary harm to the other through
conduct of third persons in respect to the other's interest in the property.”
Note: REBA’s Specimen Litigation Forms are models or examples to be used in specific circumstances. Consult
applicable law prior to using the forms.
(5-5-08)
REBA Form No.53
© Real Estate Bar Association for Massachusetts
(5-5-08)