Capitol Dodge Sales v. Northern Concrete Pipe, Inc. case brief

Capitol Dodge Sales v. Northern Concrete Pipe, Inc. case brief summary
346 N.W.2d 535 (1983)

CASE SYNOPSIS

Defendant buyer appealed from the circuit court (Michigan), which affirmed a trial court judgment awarding plaintiff car dealership damages for breach of contract for the sale of a new truck.

CASE FACTS
The buyer of a truck had the truck picked up by the dealership and returned to the dealership's lot within three days of purchase because the truck overheated each time it was driven. The dealership contended that the buyer breached its contract to purchase and the trial court awarded damages to the dealership. That judgment was affirmed on appeal, and the buyer challenged the order affirming the judgment.

DISCUSSION

• The court reversed. 
• The court found error in the finding that the buyer had accepted the truck and in the conclusion that it had thereafter wrongfully attempted a revocation of the sale. 
• The court found that the evidence showed no acceptance within the meaning of the Uniform Commercial Code, and that the buyer had an absolute right to reject the truck. 
• The court determined that U.C.C. § 2-606 contemplated an act of the buyer beyond taking delivery or possession of the goods. 
• The court also found that U.C.C. § 2-602 allowed a rejection of goods for nonconformance within a reasonable time after their delivery. 
• The court reasoned that while transfer of possession or title may be acts bearing on the question of acceptance, they were not in themselves determinative of acceptance.

CONCLUSION
Judgment that the buyer owed damages to the car dealership for an alleged breach of contract was reversed and the cause was remanded for entry of judgment in favor of the buyer.

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