Appellate Law

CA1: accrual of warranty claims under the UCC

By S. COTUS

Trans-Spec Truck Ser v. Caterpillar Inc., No. 07-1476.  This is a long case, which comes down to ?the accrual and statute of limitations provisions of the Uniform Commercial Code of Massachusetts to breach of warranty claims.?   Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 106, § 2-725(1) (four years from delivery).  The exception is in (2) for future performance contracts "the four-year clock begins to tick when the breach is discovered or should have been discovered, or when the explicit time period expires, whichever occurs first."  Taking an Eerie guess, the First concludes that a repair promise is a promise for future performance, such as a service plan.  However, the First says that this service plan (and most) are not actually warranties, but rather a promise to fix things that break.  The plaintiff also fails to make an equitable estoppel argument.

Reviewing a grant of summary judgment on a negligence claim, the First holds that a disclaimer of negligence claims wasn?t unconscionable, and besides, the plaintiffs could have sued under the contract theory.

Procedurally, the First explains how a 12(b)(6) motion can be converted into a 56 motion.  The First figures out that because it wasn?t converted to a motion for summary judgment, the District Court and the First Circuit need to only address the pleadings.  The First goes on to note that a District Court judge can ?sparingly? consider matters not before the magistrate.  See 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1).

A late motion to amend the pleadings to include an unfair trade claim is denied.

Full post as published by Appellate Law and Practice on April 30, 2008 (boomark / email).