Michak v. Transnation Title Insurance Co., 148 Wash. 2d 788

Summary

The Washington Supreme Court held that a title insurer could amend the legal description in a preliminary title commitment before issuing the final policy. It further held that the insured’s initials on the corrected legal description demonstrated assent to the amendment, absent fraud, coercion, or deprivation of the opportunity to read it. The court reversed the Court of Appeals and reinstated summary judgment for Transnation Title Insurance Company.

Holdings

1. The preliminary title commitment did not preclude Transnation from correcting or amending the legal description of the property in Schedule A before issuing the policy.
2. By initialing the corrected legal description at closing, Michak manifested assent to Transnation's amendment of the legal description and could not later disavow that assent.
3. Michak had no viable breach of contract claim because the property description was properly corrected before the policy issued, she acknowledged the corrected description, and the policy insured the property she purchased.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the preliminary title commitment contractually precluded Transnation from amending the legal description in Schedule A before issuing the title policy.
2. Whether Michak accepted the amendment by initialing the corrected legal description at closing before the policy was issued.

Disposition

reversed