Sometimes the jury likes us.

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/business/20080411-9999-1b11trial.html

i wonder if the outcome would have been the same if he was their exclusive buyers agent...

Where I am, "fiduciary duty" implies, there was an exclusive written buyer agency agreement. California might be different.

He did not have a written exclusive buyer agency agreement. I just got off the phone with him.

Was it implied, or did he have NO FIDUCIARY AGENCY at all counter to the report stated? What was his relationship with the buyer?

ok so the defendant was the selling agent. The fiduciary duty of an agent to disclose what he or she knows to be material is set in stone. However, in this situation, the Ummels really wanted to the property and regardless of what it was "worth." The article fails to mention the appraised value of their property. The agent's CMA doesn't mean squat when it comes to financing if the appraisal doesn't justify the price. And SQ Ft is not the only determining factor of the price even for properties on the same street.

There was most likely some conversations between the agent and buyers about looking at other properties. And the Ummels do not strike me as unsophisticated or non-English speaking.

The jury had a hard time reaching a verdict because their heads are clogged from the recent news of the recession etc. They did the right thing and stuck to the jury facts in a vacuum.

These folks had nothing but a bad case of buyer's remorse.
That's just my impression.

Ummel Case: Given the limited details available, one can only speculate, that the jury may have concluded that:

• Mr. Little, being the agent of the seller had no fiduciary duty to the buyers.

• Mr Little’s duty of disclosure was only related to his personal knowledge of material facts concerning the seller’s property.

• That the buyers, although possessing a certain degree of sophistication with respect to real estate transactions, did voluntarily enter into the transaction representing themselves, and in effect were the author of their own misfortune.

Important Notice: This information is provided as basic educational information by the author and is not a substitute for the advice of an expert and/or the advice of a lawyer. There is NO representation as to legality, accuracy, correctness of the herein information and the reader is strongly urged to consult a lawyer in the relevant jurisdiction to ensure accuracy before acting on this information .