James B. Laurin & another v. DeCarolis Construction Company, Inc., 372 Mass. 688

Summary

The buyers entered into a contract with the seller under which the seller was to construct a home on a wooded lot and not remove the trees, shrubs, or gravel on the land. The seller removed nearly all of the trees and shrubs and much of the gravel. The buyer claimed that the removal of this property from the land constituted conversion because the buyers were the equitable owners of the land. The seller claimed that the buyers were not entitled to recover for conversion because they were not entitled to possession of the land at the time the property was removed. The court held that the buyers were entitled to recover under breach of contract principles and that the measure of damages was the value of the property removed less the seller's costs in removing it. The court ruled that it would be improper for the buyers to be compensated for the full market value of the property removed because the seller's efforts in removing the property added value to it.