## Facts

- A builder contracted to sell the buyers a particular lot and to construct a residence on it pursuant to agreed plans and specifications.
- The buyers valued the lot’s location and sought to enforce the bargain for that specific property.
- The buyers claimed the house was not constructed in accordance with the specifications, contained construction defects, and was completed late.
- The trial court (sitting in equity) ordered specific performance requiring conveyance of the house and lot.
- After ordering conveyance, the court transferred the remaining claims to the common-law docket for a jury trial on damages.
- The jury awarded damages for defective construction ($3,318) and for delay in performance ($910.38).
- The builder appealed, disputing the availability of damages alongside specific performance, the sufficiency and measure of proof, and the disposition of the builder’s counterclaim.

## Issues

1. Whether a purchaser may obtain specific performance of a real estate contract and also recover damages for defective construction and delay in performance.
2. Whether the buyers presented sufficient evidence to support damages for construction defects and delay, and whether the verdict was excessive.
3. Whether alleged admissions or an asserted prior breach by the buyers (including failure to make a down payment) barred recovery.
4. Whether the trial court properly directed a verdict against the builder on its counterclaim.

## Decision

- The Court of Appeals of Kentucky affirmed the judgment.
- The court held that specific performance and compensatory damages for defective and delayed performance were not inconsistent remedies on these facts.
- The court upheld the jury’s awards as supported by the evidence and not excessive.
- The court rejected the builder’s arguments that the buyers’ alleged admissions or purported prior breach barred damages.
- The court upheld the directed verdict against the builder on its counterclaim.

## Legal Principles

- Specific performance of a contract to convey real property may be granted together with monetary compensation necessary to account for defective or incomplete performance and to avoid leaving the buyer undercompensated.
- A buyer’s acceptance of conveyance pursuant to a decree of specific performance does not, by itself, constitute an election that bars recovery of damages for construction defects or delay, so long as the damages do not produce a double recovery.
- Damages for defective construction may be measured by the reasonable cost to correct proven defects when supported by competent evidence.
- Damages for delay in performance are recoverable in an appropriate case when the buyer proves loss attributable to the late completion.
- A directed verdict on a counterclaim is proper where the evidence would not permit a reasonable jury to find for the counterclaimant.

## Conclusion

The court upheld a remedy package requiring conveyance of the house and lot while also compensating the buyers for construction defects and delay, concluding these forms of relief were compatible and that the jury’s damage awards and the rejection of the builder’s counterclaim were supported by the record.


Billy Williams Builders & Developers, Inc. v. Hillerich, 446 S.W.2d 280 (Ky. Ct. App. 1969)