Bar Exam Toolbox Podcast Episode 95: Listen and Learn -- Promissory Estoppel
Law School Toolbox Podcast Episode 245: Listen and Learn -- Promissory Estoppel
A federal court in Michigan recently granted several related franchisors’ motions to dismiss a franchisee’s claims for violations of the Michigan Franchise Investment law. Benjamin Franklin Franchising SPE LLC v. David...more
A recent court decision explained the circumstances under which a plaintiff may assert a claim for promissory estoppel and whether a private right of action exists for a certain alleged violation of the Michigan Franchise...more
Within days of one another, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth and Second Circuits ruled—on issues of first impression for both—that ERISA expressly preempts state law breach of contract and promissory estoppel claims...more
A couple of months ago, we examined NW Media Holdings Corp. v. IBT Media Inc., 2023 N.Y. Slip Op. 30875(U) (Sup. Ct., N.Y. County Mar. 22, 2023) (here), a case in which a lower court addressed the question whether the...more
Barkley v. Connally, a “bet-the-farm” case if there ever was one, invokes the merger clause, a basic principle of contract law. Clients and lawyers: Read this analysis so as to avoid boundless grief and disappointment for...more
A federal court in Massachusetts has dismissed franchise claims brought against a manufacturer, concluding that the distributor had failed to identify a franchise fee that would qualify it for protection from non-renewal...more
The Tenth Circuit has ruled in favor of KFC in a dispute with a franchisee alleging a breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing. Kazi v. KFC US, LLC, 2023 WL 4983119 (10th Cir. Aug. 4, 2023)....more
The California Court of Appeal, in a major win for managed care payors and claims administrators, affirmed a lower court decision granting summary judgment in favor of United Healthcare (United), finding that United did not...more
The United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida, applying Florida law, denied an excess insurer’s motion to dismiss an estoppel claim where the insurer reversed its coverage position on which the insured...more
In Louis Degidio, Inc. v. Industrial Combustion, LLC, Louis Degidio, Inc. (Degidio) and Louis Degidio Services, Inc. (Degidio Services) sued Industrial Combustion, LLC (IC), a manufacturer of “institutional boiler system”...more
The Wisconsin Court of Appeals addressed in a July 13th opinion a pricing dispute involving the disposal of debris from a demolition project. See Advanced Trucking & Services, LLC v. Hanover Insurance Company, 2022 WL 2719712...more
This would be a great law school problem. But you non-geeks, feel free to join in, too! The following is a true story. A man went to pizza restaurant in Scranton, Pennsylvania, and ordered a stromboli worth a little more...more
In BCD Associates., LLC v. Crown Bank, CA No. N15c-11-062 (Super. Ct. Del, May 2, 2022), the trial court found that when a bank pays a contractor directly, it can create a legally binding relationship subject to the terms of...more
Justice Borrok of Manhattan’s Commercial Division presided over a bench trial between a contractor and a sub-contractor concerning payments connected to work on New York City Housing Authority’s (NYCHA) Harlem River Houses....more
The Sixth Circuit has held that a contractual forum-selection clause in a franchise agreement was unenforceable because it violated state law. In Lakeside Surfaces, Inc. v. Cambria Company, LLC, Lakeside Surfaces, a...more
The Bullet Point is a biweekly update of recent, unique, and impactful cases in state and federal courts in the area of commercial litigation. We’re pleased to expand the Bullet Point from its previous coverage of Ohio case...more
While parties may discuss the terms of a business arrangement, absent definite agreement on all material terms or a definite promise, these arrangements are generally unenforceable. However, as the Court of Chancery held in...more
The statute of frauds is an affirmative defense in a breach of contract suit that, where applicable, renders a contract unenforceable. It exists to “prevent fraud and perjury in certain kinds of transactions by requiring...more
Promissory Estoppel- Faith Lawley, LLC v. McKay, 12th Dist. Warren No. CA2020-08-052, 2021-Ohio-2156- In this appeal, the Twelfth Appellate District affirmed the trial court’s decision, agreeing that there was no...more
The Supreme Court of New Jersey recently cast doubt on the applicability of the federal “family office” exception for investment advisers under the New Jersey Uniform Securities Law (NJUSL) while allowing the plaintiff to...more
Employees who claim that their employers misclassified them as exempt from the overtime requirements of Massachusetts law frequently attempt to recover overtime pay for hours worked outside the statute of limitations...more
American Bottling Co. v. Repole, C.A. No. N19C-03-048 AML CCLD (Del. Super. Dec. 30, 2020) - This case illustrates that a Delaware court will dismiss a claim against an officer for tortious interference with a contract to...more
In Plastic Surgery Center, P.A. v. Aetna Life Ins. Co., 2020 U.S. App. LEXIS 22274 (July 17, 2020), the Third Circuit held that an out-of-network medical provider's state law claims against an insurer were not precluded by...more
Medical providers treating patients covered by ERISA-governed health plans on an out-of-network basis can assert state-law claims to hold plans to their payment promises without running afoul of ERISA’s preemption provision...more
In Carlos Eduardo Lorefice Lynch, et al. v. R Angel Gonzalez Gonzalez, et al., C.A. No. 2019-0356-MTZ (Del. Ch. July 31, 2020), the Delaware Court of Chancery (the “Court”) examined an extensive paper trail purportedly...more