Chapter 22: Performance and Breach of Sales and Lease Contracts Flashcards
Seller/Buyer contract obligations
- Seller must transfer and deliver conforming goods
- Buyer must accept and pay for conforming goods
UCC remedies
- Retain goods
- Require breaching party’s performance
Good Faith
Foundation of every UCC commercial contract. Honesty
Good Faith (merchant)
Honesty in fact and observance of reasonable commercial standards of fair dealing in the trade
Held to higher standard of care than non-merchants
Good Faith and Contract Performance
- Seller’s obligation is to transfer and deliver conforming goods
- Buyer’s obligation is to accept and pay for conforming goods
- Court imposes good faith standards when contract is unclear
Tender
Make goods available
Seller’s duty to tender delivery of conforming goods
- With reasonable notice
- At a reasonable hour
- In a reasonable manner
- Unless otherwise agreed
Place of delivery not designated in contract (Place of business, no place of business, warehouse)
- Buyer picks up at Seller’s place of business
- If seller has no place of business, then seller’s residence
- If both parties know the goods are elsewhere (at a warehouse), then place of delivery is the location of goods
Shipment Contracts: Seller has a duty to:
- Put goods int hands of independent carrier
- Make contract for transportation
- Obtain and promptly deliver or tender to the buyer any document necessary
- Promptly notify Buyer that shipment has been made
What if seller doesn’t make a reasonable shipping contract or fails to notify buyer of the shipment?
Buyer can reject goods, but only if a material loss or significant delay in delivery
Destination contract: Seller has a duty to:
- Tender the goods at a reasonable house
- Hold conforming goods at the buyer’s disposal for a reasonable period of time
- Give buyer appropriate notice
- Provide buyer with any document of title necessary for buyer to obtain delivery from carrier
The Perfect Tender Rule
If goods, or tender of delivery, fail in any respect to conform to the contract buyer has a right to:
1. Accept the goods
2. Reject the entire shipment
3. Accept part and reject part
Exceptions to Perfect Tender Rule:
- Agreement of the parties
- Seller’s cure
- Reasonable grounds that buyer will accept
- Substitution of carrier
- Commercial Impracticability
- Destruction of goods
- Right of Assurance
Agreement of the Parties (Exception to Perfect Tender Rule)
Parties agree that some defective goods will be acceptable, if seller is able to repair or replace within a reasonable time
Cure
The seller’s right to repair, adjust or replace defective or nonconforming goods
Seller’s Cure (Exception to Perfect Tender Rule)
Seller has the right to attempt to “cure” (ship conforming goods if:
1. Delivery is rejected because goods were nonconforming
2. Time for performance has not expired
3. Seller provides timely notice to buyer of intent to cure
4. The cure can be made within the contract time for performance
Reasonable Grounds Required, also limits right to reject goods
Reasonable Grounds Required
Even if time for performance has expired, seller has reasonable grounds to believe buyer will accept nonconforming tender
Limits Right to Reject Goods
Substantially restricts right of rejection. Buyer must act in good faith and give specific reasons for refusing acceptance
Substitution of Carriers (Exception to the Perfect Tender Rule)
If a carrier becomes impracticable or unavailable through no fault of either party, a commercially reasonable substitute is acceptable. Seller is normally responsible for any additional shipping costs, unless contracts state otherwise
Installment Contracts (Exception to the Perfect Tender Rule)
Require or authorize delivery in two or more separate lots to be accepted and paid for separately
When can installment contracts be breached
When one or more nonconforming installments substantially impair the value of the whole contract
When can a buyer or lessee reject an installment
Only if the nonconformity substantially impairs the value of the installment and cannot be cured
Commercial Impracticability (Exception to Perfect Tender Rule)
Occurrence of an unforeseen contingency that makes performance impracticable.
Seller must notify buyer as soon as practical that there will be a delay or nondelivery
A delay does not mean it’s a breach
T/F: Cost is not a foreseeable contingency
False