Tuesday, December 3, 2013

Williams v. Walker-Thomas Furniture Co. case brief

Williams v. Walker-Thomas Furniture Co. case brief summary
198 A.2d 914 (1964)


CASE SYNOPSIS
Appellant consumer challenged the judgment of the trial court (District of Columbia), which held in favor of appellee retail store and found that the contracts between appellant and appellee for purchases of household articles were valid.

CASE FACTS
Appellant consumer, a person of limited education separated from her husband, maintained herself and her seven children by means of public assistance. Over five years, she had a continuous course of dealings with appellee retail store from which she purchased many household articles on an installment plan. Appellee filed a complaint in replevin for possession of all the items purchased by appellant, alleging that her payments were in default and that it retained title to the goods according to the sales contracts. The trial court entered judgment for appellee.

ISSUE
Appellant's principal contentions on appeal were that there was a lack of meeting of the minds, and that the contracts were against public policy.

DISCUSSION

  • The court affirmed the judgment of the trial court because even though she was not provided a copy of the contracts, she still had the duty to ask some one to read or explain them to her. 
  • The court also held that although appellee's conduct may have raised questions of sharp practice and irresponsible business dealings, a review of the state's laws did not reveal any ground upon which the court could declare the contracts contrary to public policy.

CONCLUSION
The court affirmed the judgment of the trial court in favor of appellee retail store because even though appellant consumer was not provided a copy of the contracts, she still had the duty to ask some one to read or explain them to her. The court also held that a review of the state's laws did not reveal any ground upon which the court could declare the contracts contrary to public policy.


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