Lucy v. Zehmer

While drinking at a bar, A.H. Zehmer (defendant) and W.O. Lucy (plaintiff) discussed for forty minutes Lucy's offer to buy Zehmer's farm for $50,000, an offer Lucy had made and Zehmer had refused several times before; Zehmer drafted a sale agreement on a bar receipt, revised it at Lucy's request to include title-examination terms and his wife's signature, and had his wife sign it after privately whispering to her it was a joke - a joke never communicated to Lucy. Zehmer accepted Lucy's $5 down payment before realizing Lucy was serious, at which point Zehmer claimed the whole thing was a joke; Lucy successfully raised $50,000 and completed a title check, but Zehmer refused to close, and Lucy sued for specific performance, which the trial court denied.