Hicks v. Sumter Bank & Trust Co.

A bank could not be held liable for statements made by an independent surveyor/engineer whom the bank's vice-president hired to conduct a soil study on the secured property.

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Sumter Bank & Trust Co. “the Bank” sued Danny and Valerie Hicks for amounts allegedly owed on three promissory notes. The Hickses answered, claiming that fraud barred the Bank from recovering under the notes. They also alleged a counterclaim for fraud and misrepresentation. The Bank moved for summary judgment on its claims and on the Hickses’ counterclaim. The trial court granted the motion and entered a final judgment for the Bank on the notes. Finding no error, we affirm. “Summary judgment is appropriate when the evidence, viewed favorably to the nonmovant, establishes that no genuine issues of material fact remain and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.”1 So viewed, the record shows that real estate developer Danny Hicks obtained financing from the Bank for a development project in Crisp County. When Danny completed the project, he contacted the Bank to discuss financing opportunities for another Crisp County development. At that point, Ben Dupree, a vice president with the Bank, recommended that Danny purchase a piece of property in Sumter County that the Bank had acquired through foreclosure “the property” or “the Sumter County property”. According to Danny, Dupree told him that the Sumter County property “was ready for development” and showed him a subdivided plat of the property that had been prepared for the Bank.

Danny visited the property with Dupree and observed that it had been semi-developed and laid out in lots. The plat, however, had not been recorded, and Danny and Dupree determined that the plat and the size of certain lots needed to be revised to comply with new Sumter County guidelines. Dupree agreed to hire Earl Dunmon, a surveyor/engineer, to conduct a soil study on the property and revise the plat.

Hicks v. Sumter Bank & Trust Co.

A bank could not be held liable for statements made by an independent surveyor/engineer whom the bank's vice-president hired to conduct a soil study on the secured property.

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