A Recourse for Latent Defects Is a Personal Right that Is Not Lost upon the Resale of the Immovable

This post, published on Éditions Yvon Blais’ blog on latent defects on June 19, 2017 (FR), discusses the judgment in Mazzella v. Retsinas (Full Text | Fiche Quantum), which reminds us that a claim for latent defects is a personal right that persists despite the sale of an immovable during the proceedings.

In this judgment, the Court of Appeal found that the trial judge erred in concluding that the appellant (the buyer) had lost all interest in her recourse for latent defects due to her reselling the immovable after her institution of said recourse.

The Court of Appeal emphasizes that a buyer normally retains the quality and interest required for a recourse for latent defects despite the resale of the immovable, particularly when he has had to agree to a reduced sale price due to the defect or when he himself has suffered a prejudice for which he has yet to be compensated.