Haase

Plaintiff brought this action in superior court to obtain specific performance of a land sale contract. Defendant interposed the defense of collateral estoppel, contending that issues vital to plaintiffs’ action for specific performance had already been decided against plaintiffs in a prior action of unlawful detainer brought by defendant against plaintiffs in the municipal court. The superior court rejected the defense and decreed that the contract be specifically performed. Both defendant and plaintiffs appeal from the judgment, defendant contending that the prior municipal court judgment is a conclusive adjudication as to all issues actually litigated in that action, and further, that the agreement which the superior court has ordered to be specifically performed was not the agreement of the parties, but was created by the court; plaintiffs contending that the court erred in failing to award damages as an incident to the decree of specific performance.

The facts are undisputed: On August 7, 1961, the plaintiffs, Robert Haase, Jr., and his wife, as purchasers, and defendant, V. R. Lamia, as seller, executed a written agreement (in the form of escrow instructions), for the…