Mongeon Bay Properties, Inc. v. Mallets Bay Homeowners Association
Vermont Supreme Court
149 A.3d 940 (2016)
- Written by Robert Cane, JD
Facts
Mongeon Bay Properties, LLC (Mongeon) (plaintiff) leased land abutting Lake Champlain to Mallets Bay Homeowner’s Association (the association) (defendant) under a multi-year ground lease. The lease required that the association allow no waste of the premises. The shoreline suffered severe erosion due to bad weather and high water levels on the lake. The association did not take measures to prevent damage to the shoreline by adequately maintaining the seawall. Instead, the association relied on each resident to protect the shoreline area abutting each resident’s property. Mongeon sued the association, seeking to terminate the lease and reenter the premises. Mongeon provided expert testimony as to what measures would have been reasonable to protect the premises from unreasonable erosion. The trial court found that the association had breached its obligation under the lease to prevent waste, but the trial court awarded damages to Mongeon rather than terminating the lease and issuing Mongeon a writ of possession of the premises. The association appealed, arguing that the damage to the shoreline was the result of ordinary wear and tear.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Robinson, J.)
What to do next…
Here's why 832,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
- Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,500 briefs, keyed to 994 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
- The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
- Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
- Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.
