Franklin, MA asked in Real Estate Law and Civil Litigation for Massachusetts

Q: House owner went into property before scheduled walk thru

My ex fiancé and mother went in on a house together. When we broke up he wanted to kick my mom out, we sued him for breach of contract when he filled for evection. We won and my mom has until February 28, 2023 to vacate the property at that time we will do a walk thru of premises and then he will hand over the settlement check. I just found out a few days ago he broke into the house, and unlocked all the doors for a realtor to go in and do an appraisal. 1 week before the scheduled walk thru. Was he allowed to enter the premises before the scheduled walk thru? He broke in thru the garage door. I have it on 2 videos of him admitting he went in and what’s the big deal. My lawyer is out of the country and I have no one to ask about this , we now have another scheduled walk thru set for March 2nd because we are getting severe snow storm in Massachusetts, what should I do , do I have any standing?

1 Lawyer Answer
Christopher Tolley
Christopher Tolley
Answered
  • Boston, MA
  • Licensed in Massachusetts

A: I assume your ex's entry into the property violated the parties' settlement agreement. However, you do not articulate any harm to you or your mother as a result of his acts and therefore you would not be entitled to damages. Therefore, it does not seem to be in your interest to reopen the settlement to attempt to extract damages from your ex fiance. Your goal is to get the settlement check. However, you should refuse to agree to any reduction in the settlement due to the damages your ex caused.

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