Facts

Defendant Hyun Huh claimed he invested money with plaintiff Yang Cha Huh and her husband for the purchase of a spa property business. When plaintiff's husband died, her children forced defendant out of the business. There was no written partnership agreement. Defendant worked and lived on the property for over 20 years.

PLAINTIFF'S CONTENTIONS:
The plaintiff contended that the defendant did not contribute any funds to the purchase of the properties. The plaintiff purchased the property on which the business was located prior to meeting defendant. It was Korean custom to put property title in the name of another trusted person to establish credit for the purchase of other properties. The defendant also never contributed any funds to cover the losses of the business and never requested to see an accounting. As such, he could not know whether the funds used to purchase other properties came from his share of the profits.

DEFENDANT'S CONTENTIONS:
All spa real property was purchased in either Hyun Huh's name alone or as joint tenants. There was no written partnership agreement but rather a long history of joint ownership, control and management of the business. The business funds used to purchase the properties came from either Hyun Huh's savings or from his share of profits re-invested into the company.

Result

The jury concluded that defendant was not a partner. In post trial motions, the court ordered that defendant Hyun Huh recover all money paid for the mortgage or maintenance of the properties. As part of the equitable relief, the court order required defendant to convey property to plaintiff and contained a provision that plaintiff was to pay for any mortgage payments defendant made. The court ordered defendant to convey title to two parcels to plaintiff. When defendant refused to do so, the court ordered the clerk to execute quitclaim deeds. When defendant refused to vacate his office at the spa, the court issued an order requiring him to do so or his personal belongings would be discarded. He was given 10 days to vacate. The last day to leave was June 15, 2008.