Sale Rescission Suit Over Undisclosed Right of Preemption

A person, having contracted to purchase land with a building on it, subsequently discovered that the property was subject to a right of preemption held by a third party, which defect was not disclosed prior to the sale. The buyer sought judicial resolution to rescind the sale and recover damages, but the lower court dismissed the claim, finding the seller was not bound to disclose the existence of the right of preemption, as it was a public law matter unknown to the seller, and the buyer failed to prove the seller knew of the right or acted in bad faith. The highest court upheld the dismissal, reasoning that the seller's obligation was to guarantee against the preemption right itself, not to disclose its existence, and absent proof of bad faith or knowledge of the defect, the seller could not be held liable for failure to inform the buyer.