Seller Liability for Partial Eviction Undermining Sale's Purpose

A purchaser of an immovable property, having been evicted following a successful third-party claim that established a superior, pre-existing right, sued the seller for breach of warranty against eviction, seeking reimbursement of the price and damages, but the lower court dismissed the claim, finding that the eviction only concerned a portion of the property, which did not fundamentally alter the buyer's enjoyment of the whole. The highest court, however, overturned this decision, reasoning that the seller's obligation to warrant against total or partial eviction is absolute, and since the eviction deprived the buyer of a substantial part of the property, thereby frustrating the essential purpose of the sale, the seller was liable for the full reimbursement of the price and damages, regardless of the lower court's assessment of the remaining usability of the property.