Court Opinion

ID: 9694746
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-25 17:53:35.088121+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:20:05.121681
License: Public Domain

SPAETH, Judge,
concurring:
On August 23, 1976, appellant entered into an unconditional agreement to purchase the property at 1000 DeKalb Street. See Record at 132a-133a and 160a-163a. On August 25 appellant agreed to purchase appellee’s practice, subject to one condition only, that if the purchase of the *91property did not occur, appellant was not obliged to purchase the practice.1 The purchase of the property could not occur only if appellant breached his legal obligation to purchase the property, or if Craig Sablosky, appellee’s son, breached his legal obligation to sell the property, or if both mutually agreed to rescind the agreement.2 Therefore, appellant gave up nothing when, on September 21, he obtained appellee’s covenant not to compete. As the majority notes, to be specifically enforceable a covenant not to compete must be supported by adequate consideration. Since appellant’s covenant was not so supported, it is not specifically enforceable.3

. Paragraph 4 of the agreement to purchase the practice stated:
This sale is contingent upon the purchase of BUYER of premises 1000 DeKalb Street, Norristown, Pennsylvania and the closing of this transaction shall not take place unless and until said sale is consummated. Immediately after the sale of said premises is consummated, the closing hereunder shall be held and the assets of the SELLER, including all of SELLER’S records of its patients, shall then be delivered to BUYER.

. There is no indication of record that either a breach or a mutual rescission occurred.

. It may be noted that appellant’s duty to purchase the property did not technically run to appellee personally, but rather to appellee’s son, who was title-owner of the property. However, in the circumstances of this case, appellant’s performance of his duty to the third party, i. e. appellee’s son, could not serve as adequate consideration for appellee’s promise not to compete. See generally 1A Corbin, Contracts § 176 (1963). This is so because, as the record shows, appellee’s son acted only as a strawman for appellee. Record at 88a. (And consider the facts mentioned in the majority opinion, e. g., appellee’s assistance in obtaining the mortgage money for appellant.) In substance, therefore, although not in form, appellant’s duty to purchase the property did run to appellee; appellant’s breach of that duty would have amounted to a breach of his agreement to purchase appellee’s practice.