Eastwood v. Horse Harbor Foundation, Inc., 241 P.3d 1256 (2010)

Citation: Eastwood v. Horse Harbor Foundation, Inc., 241 P.3d 1256 (2010)
Parent Document: Eastwood v. Horse Harbor Foundation, Inc., 241 P.3d 1256 (2010)
Jurisdiction: Washington (state)
Effective Date: 2010-11-04
Original Source: https://www.courtlistener.com/opinion/2372386/eastwood-v-horse-harbor-foundation-inc/ ↗

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¶ 59 Similarly, in Alejandre, 159 Wash.2d 674, 153 P.3d 864, the plaintiff sued to recover damages arising from the purchase of a house. Id. at 677, 153 P.3d 864. The buyer claimed that the house was not as he believed because the septic system needed repair. Id. The sale of the house was controlled by a purchase and sale agreement that placed the burden on the buyer to perform an inspection; the sale was specifically conditioned upon the buyer's inspection of the septic system and "`[a]ll inspection(s) must be satisfactory to the Buyer, in the Buyer's sole discretion.'" Id. at 678, 153 P.3d 864 (quoting earnest money agreement) (alterations in Alejandre).[5] In Alejandre, the parties had, in essence, by agreement, modified the duty to disclose imposed by law. This court relied upon the independent duty doctrine as an analytical tool to support its conclusion that given the detailed contractual terms covering the sale of the house and the duties of the buyer to inspect, the seller did not have an independent duty to the buyer under the tort theory of negligent misrepresentation. Importantly, in Alejandre, we made no meaningful analysis of the nature of the damages and only said, "Here, the injury complained of is a failed septic system. Purely economic damages are at issue." Id. at 685, 153 P.3d 864. We cited Stuart, 109 Wash.2d at 420, 745 P.2d 1284, and Griffith, 93 Wash.App. at 213, 969 P.2d 486, for support of that statement that the claim was for purely economic damages. See Alejandre, 159 Wash.2d at 684-85, 153 P.3d 864.

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