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Appellate Court Says Waiver Enforceable, Notwithstanding Statute
Many state franchise or distributor statutes contain provisions that purport to limit the enforceability of waivers or releases signed by dealers or franchisees. The restrictions on waivers ' even to settle existing disputes (as opposed to prospective waivers or releases when there is no current dispute) ' are often justified on claimed “inequality of power” between the manufacturer or distributor and franchisee. One court recently struck a blow in favor of manufacturers and distributors in upholding a waiver even though part of the statute expressly referenced restrictions on certain waivers.
In Edwards v. Kia Motors of America, Edwards and his company, Huntsville Kia, sued Kia Motors of America in federal court, claiming that Kia violated a state dealer statute providing that any person who was injured by a violation of the statute could bring a claim “[n]otwithstanding the terms, provisions, or conditions of any dealer agreement or franchise or the terms or provisions of any waiver,” among other things. So. 2d, 2008 WL 2068088 (Ala. May 16, 2008). Edwards claimed that he purchased the Kia dealership with an understanding that he would later receive another dealership in a different town and that he would be able to sell the first dealership to a buyer that Kia would find. After the first dealership continued to lose money, Edwards eventually found a potential buyer and submitted a proposal for the buy/sell to Kia. In connection with the request for approval of the sale, Edwards signed a broad release; he later claimed that he was afraid Kia would not approve the sale if he refused to sign the release and that he was faced with a deadline for closing the sale with the buyer.
Why So Many Great Lawyers Stink at Business Development and What Law Firms Are Doing About It
Why is it that those who are best skilled at advocating for others are ill-equipped at advocating for their own skills and what to do about it?
Bankruptcy Sales: Finding a Diamond In the Rough
There is no efficient market for the sale of bankruptcy assets. Inefficient markets yield a transactional drag, potentially dampening the ability of debtors and trustees to maximize value for creditors. This article identifies ways in which investors may more easily discover bankruptcy asset sales.
The DOJ's Corporate Enforcement Policy: One Year Later
The DOJ's Criminal Division issued three declinations since the issuance of the revised CEP a year ago. Review of these cases gives insight into DOJ's implementation of the new policy in practice.
A Lawyer's System for Active Reading
Active reading comprises many daily tasks lawyers engage in, including highlighting, annotating, note taking, comparing and searching texts. It demands more than flipping or turning pages.
Protecting Innovation in the Cyber World from Patent Trolls
With trillions of dollars to keep watch over, the last thing we need is the distraction of costly litigation brought on by patent assertion entities (PAEs or "patent trolls"), companies that don't make any products but instead seek royalties by asserting their patents against those who do make products.