Friday, July 22, 2011
Designer Leaves NASCAR for Formula One, Brings Contract Dispute Along for the Ride
Michael Waltrip of NASCAR fame (fame earned both as a driver and now as a team owner) has filed a complaint against auto designer Mike Coughlan. The suit claims that Coughlan breached the contract by leaving his position with Waltrip's race team prior to the end of his employment contract term. And, to make it worse, Coughlan reportedly left Waltrip's team to design cars for the Formula One team, Williams. Given NASCAR’s reported inferiority complex with respect to the older and allegedly more complex F1 racing (i.e., a kind of racing that requires one to do more than just turn left), this departure "across the pond" was especially vexing to Waltrip. The particular contractual terms cited include a “loyalty clause” and the duty of good faith and fair dealing. If the contractual fight takes any dramatic turns, perhaps Sascha Baron-Cohen will reprise his role as a Formula One turned NASCAR driver in the movie version of this dispute.
[H.R. Anderson]
July 22, 2011 in Celebrity Contracts, Current Affairs, In the News, Sports | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Alan White on JP Morgan's Attempt to Evade State Law
Friend of the blog, Alan White, reports here on a case currently before the 4th Circuit. The case is Epps v. JP Morgan Chase, which was decided last November in the Maryland District Court.
Here is Alan's commentary:
In a case now before the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals, Chase Bank asserts that it may repossess an auto loan borrower’s car without complying with consumer protections in state commercial law. The Maryland District Court found for Chase Bank, concluding that 1) the National Bank Act preempts state repossession notice law and 2) Chase was not bound by the mandatory loan contract term specifically incorporating Maryland repossession law, because as an assignee of the contract, Chase had not voluntarily agreed (!) to the choice of law provision.
The logic of the lower court opinion is remarkable. It seems to suggest that even the repossession rules of Article 9 of the Uniform Commercial Code could be preempted by the National Bank Act and OCC regulations. What is truly extraordinary, however, is the idea that a national bank could on the one hand invoke the privilege, created by the UCC and other state law, to repossess collateral without judicial process, while on the other hand disregarding the restrictions and consumer protections that accompany that privilege. If the entirety of state commercial and debt collection law conflicts with the National Bank Act, then there was no state law basis for Chase to seize Ms. Epps' car, and the purported repossession was nothing more than grand theft.
Thanks for the tip, Alan!
[JT]
July 21, 2011 in Contract Profs, Recent Cases, Weblogs | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Weekly Top Tens from the Social Science Research Network
RECENT HITS (for all papers announced in the last 60 days)
TOP 10 Papers for Journal of Contracts & Commercial Law eJournal
May 19, 2011 to July 18, 2011
RECENT HITS (for all papers announced in the last 60 days)
TOP 10 Papers for Journal of LSN: Contracts (Topic)
May 19, 2011 to July 18, 2011
[JT]
July 19, 2011 in Recent Scholarship | Permalink | TrackBack (0)