Gordon Farms, Inc. v. Carolina Cinema Corp., 1064
| Court | Court of Appeals of South Carolina |
| Writing for the Court | GARDNER; GOOLSBY, J. and LITTLEJOHN |
| Citation | 363 S.E.2d 235,294 S.C. 158 |
| Parties | GORDON FARMS, INC., d/b/a Hillcrest Shopping Center, Respondent, v. CAROLINA CINEMA CORP., Appellant. . Heard |
| Docket Number | No. 1064,1064 |
| Decision Date | 10 November 1987 |
Page 235
v.
CAROLINA CINEMA CORP., Appellant.
Decided Dec. 7, 1987.
Edward A. Lamb, Spartanburg, for appellant.
Page 236
James B. Drennan, III, Spartanburg, for respondent.
GARDNER, Judge.
[294 S.C. 159] This case involves the construction of a lease dated December 15, 1971, between Hillcrest Development Corporation, predecessor-in-interest to Gordon Farms, d/b/a Hillcrest Shopping Center (Gordon Farms) and Columbia Theatres, Inc., predecessor-in-interest to Carolina Cinema Corporation (Carolina Cinema). The appealed order held that the two pertinent provisions of the lease relating to the payment of taxes were ambiguous and allowed extraneous evidence to ascertain the intention of the parties. After allowing extraneous evidence, the circuit judge entered judgment for Gordon Farms. We reverse and remand.
The sole issue of merit is whether extraneous evidence was admissible because the pertinent contract provisions were ambiguous.
The pertinent provisions of the lease are:
The Landlord [Gordon Farms] shall pay ad valorem taxes levied or assessed by the City of Spartanburg and Spartanburg County against the real property owned by the Landlord, together with the improvements placed thereon by it, and the Tenant [Carolina Cinema] shall pay all ad valorem taxes levied or assessed by the City of Spartanburg and Spartanburg County against the personal property placed in or upon the said leased premises, together with any improvements or additions made thereto by the Tenant.
If the ad valorem taxes levied against the land and improvements or either, which constitute the Hillcrest Shopping Center site are increased to an amount more than levied during the first year subsequent to the initial occupancy of the demised premises by the Tenant, then the Tenant shall reimburse the Landlord for the pro-rated part of said excess as the Tenant's gross rent bears to the total gross floor area of the structures within the area of the shopping center as shown in the site plan referred to herein before. Landlord agrees the tenant may deduct any tax payments made hereunder from any percentage rent that may become or has become due pursuant to paragraph 2. [Emphasis ours.]
The issue of the case in hand is whether the underlined portion of the above quote is ambiguous. The trial court held [294 S.C....
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Bluffton Towne Ctr., LLC v. Gilleland-Prince, Appellate Case No. 2013–000305.
...n. 1, 427 S.E.2d 907, 909 n. 1 (Ct.App.1993) ) (internal quotation marks omitted); see also Gordon Farms, Inc. v. Carolina Cinema Corp., 294 S.C. 158, 160, 363 S.E.2d 235, 237 (Ct.App.1987) (“No authority is needed for the proposition that extraneous evidence is not admissible to alter or v......
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Bluffton Towne Ctr., LLC v. Gilleland-Prince, Appellate Case No. 2013-000305
...n.1, 427 S.E.2d 907, 909 n.1 (Ct. App. 1993)) (internal quotation marks omitted); see also Gordon Farms, Inc. v. Carolina Cinema Corp., 294 S.C. 158, 160, 363 S.E.2d 235, 237 (Ct. App. 1987) ("No authority is needed for the proposition that extraneous evidence is not admissible to alter or ......
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Universal Underwriters Ins. Co. v. Metropolitan Property and Life Ins. Co., 1339
...is ambiguous only when it may fairly and reasonably be understood in more ways than one." Gordon Farms, Inc. v. Carolina Cinema Corp., 294 S.C. 158, 160, 363 S.E.2d 235, 236 Written in the turgid vernacular typical of insurance policies, the language of the policy issued by Universal is sty......
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Bluffton Towne Ctr., LLC v. Gilleland-Prince, Appellate Case No. 2013–000305.
...n. 1, 427 S.E.2d 907, 909 n. 1 (Ct.App.1993) ) (internal quotation marks omitted); see also Gordon Farms, Inc. v. Carolina Cinema Corp., 294 S.C. 158, 160, 363 S.E.2d 235, 237 (Ct.App.1987) (“No authority is needed for the proposition that extraneous evidence is not admissible to alter or v......
-
Bluffton Towne Ctr., LLC v. Gilleland-Prince, Appellate Case No. 2013-000305
...n.1, 427 S.E.2d 907, 909 n.1 (Ct. App. 1993)) (internal quotation marks omitted); see also Gordon Farms, Inc. v. Carolina Cinema Corp., 294 S.C. 158, 160, 363 S.E.2d 235, 237 (Ct. App. 1987) ("No authority is needed for the proposition that extraneous evidence is not admissible to alter or ......
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Universal Underwriters Ins. Co. v. Metropolitan Property and Life Ins. Co., 1339
...is ambiguous only when it may fairly and reasonably be understood in more ways than one." Gordon Farms, Inc. v. Carolina Cinema Corp., 294 S.C. 158, 160, 363 S.E.2d 235, 236 Written in the turgid vernacular typical of insurance policies, the language of the policy issued by Universal is sty......