What Can We Learn From Katy Perry and Orlando Bloom? Insights into Real Estate Disputes and Contract Competency

What Can We Learn From Katy Perry and Orlando Bloom?

We already learned a lot from Katy Perry in her last real estate dispute (remember when the nun died at the Courthouse?), but this one may be The One That Got Away from her. It turns out that in 2020, Perry and her still-husband, Orlando entered into a contract to purchase a $15M Santa Barbara house owned by Carl Westcott (you may know him as the founder of 1-800-Flowers, but I know him as the Real Housewife of Dallas Cameron Wescot’s father-in-law, we love what we love!)

The Case of Contract Competency: Legal Insights

Westcott alleged that he was unable to properly review the property contract because he was on “several intoxicating pain-killing opiates” following major back surgery. When the effects of the painkillers wore off, days later, the military vet, who suffers from Huntington’s Disease, claimed he realized what he had signed and attempted to rescind the contract. They’re in Court in California, but it’s Never Really Over without a lesson for us.

Understanding Competency in Contracts

So, what can we learn from The California Gurl(s)?

We can learn all about Florida competency in contracts where in the absence of an adjudication of incompetency (someone has not been declared incompetent by a Judge), the standard to determine incompetency is whether the party is “unable to understand in a reasonable manner the nature and consequences of the transaction.” Hmmmmmm, that doesn’t appear to be super helpful, so case law has provided a bit more direction and a court must consider a wide range of factors:

• The party’s past medical and psychiatric history
• Medical and psychiatric diagnoses and opinions
• Behavior and conduct at the time of the transaction
• The circumstances surrounding the transaction (including the complexity and fairness of the transaction, as well as its departure from other similar transactions).

The trial Court considers actions and conversations at the time of the transaction as well as at other times, as long as they are not too remote in time to the disputed transaction. This is really a fact-finding mission for the Judge based on the circumstances presented in Court.

Conclusion: Insights into Real Estate Disputes

So, there you have it, we learn that Katy Perry is not one to shy from a real estate dispute. Who knows, maybe she’ll Cry About It Later. We also learn that, as expected, the Florida test for contract competency (not to be confused with a last will competency) involves all of the relevant circumstances surrounding the contract execution.