If the property was in the name of owner and the said property was sold with the respondent/plaintiff acting as a broker, the liability to pay brokerage, if any, would be that of the owner: Delhi High Court
It is an undisputed fact that the owner himself will be liable to pay brokerage, irrespective of any other circumstance. The Delhi High Court, in the recent matter of Archana Sethi & Anr. v. Sachin Verma [CM (M) 156/2021 & CM No.7295/2021 (for stay)], held the above. The proceedings of the pertinent case were held on 8th September 2021 which was presided by a single judge bench, consisting of, Justice Amit Bansal.
The facts of the case are as follows. The plaint from which the present petition arises was filed to recover brokerage amount of Rs.3,30,000, due to the respondent/plaintiff in respect of sale of the property owned by the petitioner. The respondent/plaintiff was the broker of the deal and was liable to pay 1% of the sales consideration towards brokerage charges. However, the property was sold in the name of petitioners.
The court while observing facts, scrutinizing evidences, and observing the arguments held that “If the property was in the name of petitioners and the said property was sold with the respondent/plaintiff acting as a broker, the liability to pay brokerage, if any, would be that of the petitioners. Further while giving the order, the court also ordained that “In the event, the respondent/plaintiff succeeds in his suit, he would be liable to recover the amounts due from petitioner no.1, who was the beneficiary and received the sale proceeds from the sale of the said property”.