Lechner v. Halling

Leslie Lechner (plaintiff) hired realtor C.A. Donahue to sell his property to Lawrence Halling (defendant), who paid escrow money to Donahue and received a warranty deed held in escrow; after taking possession, Halling authorized Donahue by letter to release the purchase price from escrow to Lechner and asked Donahue to record the deed on his behalf, which she agreed to do. Before fully disbursing the escrow funds to Lechner, Donahue lost her realtor license and was convicted of embezzlement, including of funds from this transaction, leaving the deed and any recovered purchase money in receivership; Lechner sued Halling for the full purchase price or return of the property, and the trial court ruled for Halling, ordering Lechner to pursue recovery through the receivership.