## Facts

- J.S. died intestate owning Irish debentures.
- Dorrell obtained a grant of administration by false pretenses and, acting under that apparent authority, took and sold the debentures.
- The grant to Dorrell was later revoked, and administration was granted to Lamine as the lawful administrator.
- Lamine sued Dorrell in indebitatus assumpsit for money had and received, seeking the sale proceeds.
- Dorrell demurred, arguing the proceeds were not “received to the use” of Lamine because Dorrell sold as one claiming title in himself.

## Issues

1. Whether a lawful administrator may recover, in indebitatus assumpsit for money had and received, proceeds obtained by a wrongful administrator’s sale of estate assets.
2. Whether electing assumpsit to recover the proceeds treats the sale as valid and bars later pursuit of inconsistent tort remedies for conversion of the same goods.

## Decision

- Judgment for Lamine; the demurrer was overruled.
- The court held that indebitatus assumpsit for money had and received lay to recover the sale proceeds from Dorrell.
- The court recognized that Lamine could have sued in tort (trover or detinue) but could instead affirm the sale and claim the proceeds.
- By choosing assumpsit for the proceeds, Lamine was treated as affirming the sale, with the result that later tort claims premised on the sale’s invalidity would be inconsistent.

## Legal Principles

- A claimant whose property has been wrongfully sold may elect to “waive the tort,” affirm the transaction, and sue in restitution for the proceeds as money had and received.
- In money had and received, the “for the use of the plaintiff” requirement is satisfied when, as a matter of legal entitlement, the defendant holds proceeds that in justice belong to the plaintiff, even if the defendant acted for his own benefit.
- Election of assumpsit to recover proceeds operates as an affirmation of the sale and precludes later inconsistent claims that treat the sale as wrongful conversion.
- Restitution in money had and received may measure recovery by the defendant’s receipts (sale price) rather than the claimant’s loss measured by the chattel’s market value.

## Conclusion

The court permitted the rightful administrator to recover the proceeds of a wrongful administrator’s sale through money had and received, while treating that choice of remedy as an affirmation of the sale that forecloses later inconsistent tort litigation over the same transaction.


Lamine v. Dorrell, 92 Eng. Rep. 303 (K.B. 1705)