Texas Surveyors Practice Exam

Which of the following conditions is NOT required for estoppel?

1. The estopped party must have misled the claimant

2. The claimant must incur injuries due to the actions of the estopped party

3. The claimant must have known the true facts prior to relying on the statements

4. The estopped party must have intended for the claimant to rely on their statements

The correct answer is: The claimant must have known the true facts prior to relying on the statements

The correct answer centers on the principle that a claimant does not need to have known the true facts prior to relying on the statements made by the estopped party in order for estoppel to apply. In fact, estoppel is often invoked to prevent someone from arguing against a claim when they have made representations that led the other party to reasonably rely on those representations, even if the relying party did not know the actual truth at the time of reliance. Estoppel is designed to uphold fairness by preventing one party from taking a position that contradicts their previous statements or behaviors that the other party relied upon. Therefore, for estoppel to be valid, it is sufficient for the claimant to have relied on the misleading information without needing to possess knowledge of the true facts beforehand. This highlights the focus on the reliance and the resulting detriment to the claimant rather than their prior knowledge. While the other conditions relate closely to the foundational elements of estoppel, the necessity for the claimant's awareness of the truth contradicts the very essence of what estoppel aims to protect against: unreasonably detrimental reliance on misleading information.