The applicant, estate trustee for the deceased common-law spouse, brought a motion to enforce an unsigned settlement agreement against the respondent estate.
The parties had exchanged correspondence agreeing to transfer a property to the spouse in exchange for a release of her dependent's relief and constructive trust claims.
Before formal minutes of settlement were signed, the spouse died, and the respondent estate refused to complete the transfer, arguing no binding agreement existed and that the spouse's death materially changed the circumstances.
The court found that a binding contract was formed when the essential terms were agreed upon in correspondence, and declined to exercise its discretion to refuse enforcement, ordering the net proceeds of the property sale to be transferred to the applicant.
