Hathaway v. Sabin
Vermont Supreme Court
22 A. 633 (1891)
- Written by Sean Carroll, JD
Facts
Hathaway (plaintiff), a representative for four musicians, entered into a contract with Sabin (defendant) under which Sabin would provide an opera house in Montpelier for a concert and pay the musicians $75 for their performance. On the day before the concert and into the day of, a big snow storm hit Montpelier, rendering many of the roads unusable. Sabin assumed that the musicians (as well as the audience) would not be able to travel to the opera house on account of the snow and so he called Hathaway and said that it would be impossible to have the performance that night. However, in the end, the musicians were able to make it to the opera house by train and they were ready and able to perform. Sabin, however, had not gotten the opera house ready and so he was unable to hold the performance and he refused to pay the musicians. Hathaway brought suit for the $75 owed on the contract. The trial court issued a directed verdict for Hathaway. Sabin appealed.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Munson, J.)
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