RES JUDICATA-USE DEFENSIVELY OF FORMER JUDGMENT BY ONE NOT A PARTY OR IN PRIVITY WITH A PARTY TO FORMER ACTION

Plaintiff sued defendant in a federal district court to foreclose a mortgage lien alleged to exist on defendant\u27s land in consequence of a loan by plaintiff to defendant\u27s predecessor in title. Defendant\u27s land was but a part of the tract originally encumbered. In a prior action in the state court, plaintiff had sought foreclosure of the same mortgage against the holder of another parcel of the mortgaged land on the precise grounds now asserted against defendant. In that action it was held that the entire mortgage had already been discharged. Defendant moved for summary judgment, contending that the former decision estopped plaintiff from reasserting the validity of the mortgage claim. Plaintiff objected on the ground that defendant had not been a party ( or a privy to a party) to the form action. Held, motion granted. Riordan v. Ferguson, (D.C. N.Y. 1948) 80 F. Supp. 973

SPECIFIC PERFORMANCE-SCARCITY AS JUSTIFICATION FOR SPECIFIC PERFORMANCE OF CONTRACT FOR PURCHASE OF NEW CAR

In two recent cases, prospective purchasers entered into written contracts with local automobile distributors for the purchase of new cars. Because of the scarcity of new cars, the prospective purchasers\u27 names were put on waiting lists establishing a priority for delivery as new cars were received by the distributors. In both cases the distributors refused without excuse to perform when cars became available for delivery. The prospective purchasers sought specific performance on the basis that the current scarcity of new cars and the difficulty of obtaining them elsewhere for cash alone made the legal damage remedy inadequate. Held, (a) specific performance granted. Heidner v. Hewitt Chevrolet Co., (Kan. 1948) 199 P. (2d) 481, (b) specific performance denied. McCallister v. Patton, (Ark. 1948) 215 S.W. (2d) 701

EQUITY-DISINTERMENT OF DEAD BODY BURIED IN ANOTHER\u27S LAND

Complainant sought a decree in equity compelling defendant, administratrix of the estate of one Abram London, to remove the body of deceased from a grave on land belonging to complainant. Complainant had purchased the land in 1934, but through error of the cemetery officials it was resold to London in 1944. London\u27s wife was buried in the adjacent plot. Defendant contended that the relief requested would transgress London\u27s wish to be buried adjacent to his wife. Held, decree granted. The body of a person buried in a grave belonging to another is not properly buried, and the court will direct that the body be removed from such grave. Glatzer v. Dinerman, (N.J. 1948) 59 A. (2d) 242

CONTRACTS - MUNICIPAL CORPORATIONS - REVOCABILITY OF OFFER SUBMITTED UNDER STATUTORY COMPETITIVE BIDDING

In accordance with statutory provisions, the city commissioners of Atlantic City advertised for bids for certain public improvements. Plaintiff submitted a sealed bid accompanied by a deposit of $5,000, as required by the advertisement, to guarantee execution of the contract if it were the successful bidder. When the bids were opened, plaintiff was the lowest bidder by a considerable margin. Investigation disclosed that an appreciable error had been made in the calculation of its bid, however, and before any official action had been taken, plaintiff advised the city commission of the mistake and withdrew the bid. Nevertheless, the contract was subsequently awarded to plaintiff, and on its refusal to perform, the$5,000 was declared forfeited. In a suit in equity for return of the deposit, held plaintiff may recover $5,000. A competitive bid is in the nature of an option to the municipality and may not be withdrawn, but equity may grant relief by way of rescission of the bid on the basis of mistake. Conduit & Foundation Corp. v. Atlantic City, (N.J. 1949) 64 A.(2d) 382

Plant species first recognised as naturalised for New South Wales in 2002 and 2003, with additional comments on species recognised as naturalised in 2000–2001

Information is provided on the taxonomy and distribution of 71 taxa of naturalised or naturalising plants newly recorded for the state of New South Wales during the period 1 January 2002 to 31 December 2003. Of these taxa, 32 are new records for Australia (prefaced with a †). These species are: Abutilon pictum, Acanthus mollis, †Aesculus indica (naturalising), Agapanthus praecox subsp. orientalis, Ajuga reptans, †Anigozanthos flavidus, Aquilegia vulgaris, Arbutus unedo, †Athertonia diversifolia (naturalising), †Bergenia x schmidtii (naturalising), Bromus catharticus subsp. stamineus, Bryophyllum daigremontianum, Bryophyllum fedtschenkoi, Calyptocarpus vialis, †Ceiba speciosa (naturalising), Cereus uruguayanus, †Cestrum x cultum, †Chamaecyparis lawsoniana, Cistus salviifolius, †Clematis montana, †Coprosma x cunninghamii, Coprosma robusta, Cornus capitata, Cotoneaster simonsii, Cotoneaster x watereri group, Crinum moorei, Cupressus lusitanica, †Cylindropuntia fulgida var. mamillata forma monstrosa, †Cylindropuntia prolifera, Cylindropuntia tunicata, Desmanthus virgatus, Drosanthemum candens, †Elaeagnus umbellata (naturalising), †Eragrostis trichophora, †Eupatorium lindleyanum, †Gibasis pellucida, Glechoma hederacea, †Hesperis matronalis, Hieracium aurantiacum subsp. carpathicola, †Inga edulis (naturalising), †Juniperus conferta (naturalising), †Justicia caudata, Lamium galeobdolon, Lathyrus tingitanus, †Lysimachia fortunei, †Maackia amurensis, †Monstera deliciosa, †Murdannia keisak, Odontonema tubaeforme, Oxalis vallicola, Phoenix canariensis, †Physostegia virginiana, Pinus patula, Pittosporum eugenioides, †Pittosporum ralphii, Pittosporum tenuifolium, Plectranthus ecklonii, †Potentilla vesca, †Prunus campanulata, †Rhododendron ponticum, Rosa luciae, Rubus rugosus, Ruellia squarrosa, †Senna multijuga, Stapelia gigantea, Stephanophysum longifolium, Strobilanthes anisophylla, †Tabebuia chrysotricha, †Tabebuia impetiginosa, †Tradescantia pallida and Ulmus x hollandica. Additional notes and name changes are recorded for plants first recognised as naturalised for New South Wales over the period 2000–2001. The identification of several naturalised taxa occurring in New South Wales has been corrected. Plants formerly identified as Pinus nigra var. corsicana are now considered to be Pinus halepensis; Cylindropuntia arbuscula is Cylindropuntia kleiniae, Cylindropuntia tunicata is Cylindropuntia rosea, Abrus precatorius subp. precatorius is now Abrus precatorius subsp. africanus and Cotoneaster ?horizontalis is Cotoneaster microphyllus. Further field studies have revealed that Cylindropuntia leptocaulis, Cylindropuntia spinosior, Hypericum kouytchense and Chamaesyce ophthalmica are more widespread than previously thought