Breach of Sales Contract and Lease Preferential Right Action

An individual, having contracted to sell a building with an attached lease, subsequently sold the same property to a third party without respecting the rights of the initial lessee, who then sued the seller for damages related to the breach of the sales contract and the failure to uphold the lease's preferential purchase right. The court found that even though the initial sales contract was not immediately executed, the agreement to sell, which included the obligation to respect the tenant's right of first refusal, created a legally binding obligation on the seller, and thus, the subsequent sale to another party constituted a breach of contract, justifying the award of damages to the original buyer, despite the lack of transfer of ownership.