Connor v. Bogrett

596 P.2d 683, 26 U.C.C. Rep. Serv. (West) 902, 1979 Wyo. LEXIS 421
CourtWyoming Supreme Court
DecidedJune 22, 1979
Docket5023
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 596 P.2d 683 (Connor v. Bogrett) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Wyoming Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Connor v. Bogrett, 596 P.2d 683, 26 U.C.C. Rep. Serv. (West) 902, 1979 Wyo. LEXIS 421 (Wyo. 1979).

Opinions

THOMAS, Justice.

The substantive legal issue found in this case is the question of the manner of application of the sales provisions of the Uniform Commercial Code as adopted in Wyoming (§§ 34-21-201 through 34-21-299.5, W.S.1977) to a sale of a registered Black Labrador retriever which was intended for competition in field trials. More specifically the question is whether the continued physical ability of this retriever, as a matter of law, was precluded from becoming part of the basis for the bargain of the parties in [685]*685the context of § 34-21-230, W.S.1977. There is presented, in addition, a procedural question arising out of the appellees’ contention that the appeal should be dismissed because the notice of appeal was not filed in time. We shall hold that we have jurisdiction because the notice of appeal was timely and that the sales provisions of the Uniform Commercial Code lead to an affirmance of the summary judgment for the sales price which was entered by the district court upon the counterclaim of the seller.

The appellant, Connor, was the purchaser of the registered Black Labrador retriever. The appellees, Bogrett, Cassel and Coons Kennels, a co-partnership, composed of Bo-grett and Cassel, were the sellers of the retriever. (These parties hereafter will be identified as Bogrett, who was the principal actor in connection with the sale by the appellees, or as sellers.) Connor was an aficionado of Black Labrador retrievers, and he was knowledgeable about such animals. He competed with his dogs in field trial competitions, and had owned one national champion. He also judged field trial competitions. It was in this way that he became acquainted with Bogrett.

By virtue of this acquaintanceship he was invited to go dog hunting with a party which included Bogrett in 1972, and it was on this occasion that he first saw the retriever which is the subject matter of this action. Connor later judged this retriever in a field trial which was held in Idaho, and in the spring of 1974 he was present at a field trial in Colorado in which the dog competed. At that time there was dialogue with Bogrett about the possible sale of the dog to Connor, and a suggested price of $14,000 was mentioned.

Prior to that time Bogrett had been informed by his veterinarian that the retriever was afflicted with hip dysplasia. By deposition Connor’s veterinarian testified that his definition of hip dysplasia “would be that the fit of the coccyxsfemoral joint is not correct in the sense that the femoral head does not fit deeply enough into the acetabulum of the hip.” He then testified that the result of the abnormal fit is excessive motion of the joint which gives rise to changes in that joint which generally result in arthritis. Connor denies that he was given this information by Bogrett, but that point is not material because Connor asked to have the retriever examined by his own veterinarian prior to his final decision as to the purchase. As a result of that examination Connor was advised by his veterinarian that the retriever was afflicted with hip dysplasia and that the usual long-range result of this condition was the development of osteoarthritis which could occur to the extent of disabling the dog. The recommendation of the veterinarian was that Connor should not purchase the dog.

After receiving this information Connor and Bogrett had further discussions with respect to this retriever. The discussions included comparison of the dog to another Black Labrador retriever which also had hip dysplasia but still had performed successfully in field trials and had become a national champion. Bogrett stated that this retriever had similar qualities, and Connor and Bogrett did discuss the potential of the dog in terms of field trial competition. Certainly the success of the retriever as a field trial competitor would depend upon his physical ability to compete.

Ultimately Bogrett agreed to sell and Connor agreed to buy this Black Labrador retriever. The parties agreed upon a total purchase price of $8,000, of which $6,000 was to be paid at the time of the sale and the balance of $2,000 was to be paid by May 30,1975. On July 24, 1974, Connor paid the $6,000, and the dog was delivered to him at Riverton, Wyoming. The American Kennel Club registration papers for this retriever never were transferred to Connor. Connor, however, took the dog, gave it additional training, and entered it in field trials as his dog. On one occasion he even offered the services of the dog for breeding purposes. It does appear that in at least one instance he shot the dog with a shotgun, which apparently is a recognized training technique for retrievers for field trial competition.

Later in the year some difficulties were encountered with respect to the willingness [686]*686of the dog to perform in field trial competition. A trainer whom Connor had working with the dog suggested the possibility of a physical problem. Connor then had the retriever re-examined by his veterinarian, and the X rays taken on this occasion, as distinguished from the earlier X rays, revealed definite evidence of osteoarthritis. The veterinarian recommended to Connor that he return the dog to the seller. Connor then went back to Riverton, and he requested a rescission of the sale contract. This occurred in January of 1975. Bogrett, on behalf of the sellers, refused to agree to the rescission. There was a somewhat angry exchange between Connor and Bogrett, and Connor then released the dog in Bogrett’s yard in Riverton and left.

This action was brought by Connor seeking rescission of the contract. In a counterclaim filed with the Answer the seller§ sought to recover the $2,000 balance of the purchase price, and in a second claim for relief requested judgment for the reasonable value of services furnished in caring for, maintaining and training the retriever after January 25, 1975. It was not until later in the pleading stage that the parties injected theories under the Uniform Commercial Code, but both did take this stance with respect to pretrial memoranda which were filed with the court and in their respective motions for summary judgment. The district court granted the motion of the sellers for summary judgment on the claim for the balance of the purchase price; denied Con-nor’s motion for summary judgment in which he sought the return of the $6,000 previously paid; and left for trial the question of the damages claimed by the sellers for services in connection with the maintenance, care and training of the retriever. The record discloses that the district court held that Connor had accepted the dog, and that he had no right to revoke his acceptance. The court then concluded that the result was that the sellers were entitled to recover the full purchase price. The judgment which was entered by the court provided, in accordance with Rule 56, W.R.C.P., that there was no just reason for delaying entry of the judgment upon the claims adjudicated. The date of entry of that judgment was March 9, 1978. Thereafter, on April 26, 1978, the parties stipulated to the dismissal of the second count of the counterclaim without prejudice, and although no order was entered upon that stipulation a notice of appeal then was filed on May 25, 1978. In seeking the dismissal of this appeal it is urged by the sellers that the judgment was final when entered; that the filing of the notice of appeal for that reason was not timely; and that the appeal should be dismissed under prior authorities from this court.

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Bluebook (online)
596 P.2d 683, 26 U.C.C. Rep. Serv. (West) 902, 1979 Wyo. LEXIS 421, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/connor-v-bogrett-wyo-1979.