A deal is a deal! Unless you were drunk...

A deal is a deal! Unless you were drunk...

One of the first things you learn in law school is that agreements must be kept. ‘Pacta sunt servanda,’ is that adage in Latin. And in plain Dutch: a deal is a deal. Simply put, it comes down to the fact that agreements must be kept. But what if you make an agreement while you are dead drunk? In that case, you may still be able to get out of a deal. Lawyer Robert van Ewijk explains on the basis of a judgment of the Court of Appeal ‘s-Hertogenbosch out how that is.

Purchase of a golf course for €1 million euros

The case before the Court of Appeal concerned the sale of a golf course in France. That golf course is owned by two Dutch nationals through a number of companies. The project of which the golf course was part did not get off the ground. The owners therefore want to get rid of the golf course. Therefore, one evening the two Dutchmen discussed what to do with the golf course. The necessary alcoholic refreshments were also consumed.

Half of golf course sold to co-owner

The parties then agree that one owner will buy out the other for a sum of €1 million. Hands are shaken, sealing the deal. At least, that is what the seller thought. In fact, the buyer later regrets it, and wants out of the sale. He says that he never had the will to close the sale and destroys the purchase. purchase agreement relying on Art. 3:34 BW.

Buyer dumbfounded, purchase destroyed

In determining whether a lack of will existed, the court relied on various statements from individuals who were present on the night in question. According to the witnesses the man walked to the restroom with ‘waddling gait’ and could barely stand on his feet. Returning from the restroom, he sat down at the wrong table and called someone from the party asking why everyone had left. The witness:

Finally he called me asking if I had already gone to bed. I answered no and told him that I was sitting with [person B] a few meters away. [Person B] and I then walked over to his table. The three of us then drank more wine.

After the man was then taken to his bedroom in the hotel, he fell down with a ‘tremendous thump. The witness about it: “He may have been awake, but that pretty much said it all.” In short, the man was jet-lagged at the time he entered into the purchase agreement.

No purchase agreement due to intoxication

The Court of Appeals came to the opinion that the buyer was so intoxicated that there was a ’temporary disturbance of his mental faculties’ and therefore the will to enter into the contract was lacking. Therefore, the buyer could have voided the purchase agreement and could no longer be held to the sale. So for both buyer and seller, this issue will have caused some headaches.

So if you are planning to buy or sell a golf course, make sure everyone is sober. And get timely advice from the lawyer contract law from Lexys Lawyers.