Norris & Associates, Inc. v. GRM Industries, Inc.

898 F. Supp. 523, 1995 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 12924, 1995 WL 555281
District Court, W.D. Michigan·Decided August 21, 1995·No. No. 1:94-CV-692·Published·Cited by 1 cases

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OPINION

McKEAGUE, District Judge.

Plaintiffs’ first amended complaint in this diversity action contains six counts: breach of the GRM agreement; quantum meruiVun-just enrichment; breach of settlement agreement; fraud; fraudulent conveyance; and piercing the corporate veil. Now before the Court is plaintiffs’ motion for partial summary judgment, requesting judgment only as to count I of the complaint, breach of the GRM agreement. Also before the Court is defendants’ cross-motion for partial summary judgment, requesting judgment not only as to count I, but also as to count II, quantum meruit/unjust enrichment.

I

Plaintiff Jonathan Sion is president of plaintiff Norris and Associates, Inc., an Illinois corporation.1 At some time in 1991, plaintiff had negotiations with corporate officers of defendant GRM Industries (hereinaf[524] ter “defendant”), specifically, David Chandler, then-chairman of the board of directors of GRM,2 in regard to plaintiffs company potentially acting as an agent to find a buyer for defendant’s assets. Plaintiff was referred to Stephan Pinsly and, after consultation with Pinsly, subsequently received a letter from him purporting, in relevant part, “to confirm our understanding that GRM Industries would pay you commission, as follows, on any sales of assets owned by GRM to persons brought to us by you.”3 In this letter, Mr. Pinsly is identified as the Executive Assistant to the Chairman of the Board. Plaintiff contends that Pinsly also was the Secretary and Treasurer of GRM Industries at that time.

It is undisputed that plaintiff complied with the requirement stated in Pinsly’s letter that he notify defendant in writing before introducing a potential buyer and that the potential buyer ultimately purchased defendant’s assets. The dispute in this case arises from defendant’s contention that the alleged contract “does not exist as a matter of law because Mr. Pinsly did not have the requisite corporate authority to bind GRM into such an agreement. Mr. Pinsly was an executive assistant to the Chairman of the Board of GRM. He had neither expressed [sic] nor implied authority to sign any documents of a contractual nature binding the corporation. Mr. Pinsly was nothing more than an assistant who exceeded all bounds of his authority.” Defendant’s brief, p. 4. Defendant argues that only “corporate directors or officers have such authority.” Id.

Alternatively, defendant argues that the settlement agreement executed on September 30, 1993 (Appendix B), constitutes a no-vation and merger and supersedes the prior contract.4

Finally, defendant argues that Michigan law controls this lawsuit and, pursuant to the Michigan Real Estate Broker’s Licensing Act, M.C.L. 339.2501(a) and 339.2512(a), plaintiff was required to have a broker’s license. It is undisputed that plaintiff had no such license. Therefore, defendant argues it is not obligated to honor either the initial contract or the subsequent settlement agreement.

A hearing was conducted on June 5, 1995, at which time the Court ascertained that the parties were not in possession of the corporate records necessary to resolve the question of Stephan Pinsly’s corporate status. Subsequent to the hearing, the Court was provided with these documents. The Court has reviewed the pleadings and exhibits and now considers this matter ripe for decision.

II

Summary judgment is appropriate when the record reveals that there are no issues as to any material fact in dispute and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(c); Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 322-23, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 2552-53, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986); Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 248, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 2510, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986). The standard for determining whether summary judgment is appropriate is “whether the evidence presents a sufficient disagreement to require submission to a jury or whether it is so one-sided that one party must prevail as a matter of law.” Liberty Lobby, 477 U.S. at 251-52, 106 S.Ct. at 2512. “By its very terms, this standard provides that the mere existence of some alleged factual dispute between the parties will not defeat an otherwise properly supported motion for summary judgment; the requirement is that there be no genuine issue of material fact.” Id., 477 U.S. at 247-48, 106 S.Ct. at 2510 (emphasis in original).

The Court must consider all pleadings, depositions, affidavits, and admissions on file, and draw all justifiable inferences in favor of the party opposing the motion. Matsushita Elec. Ind. Co. v. Zenith Radio Corp., 475 U.S. 574, 587, 106 S.Ct. 1348, 1356, 89 [525] L.Ed.2d 538 (1986). However, the moving party is not required to expressly negate the opponent’s claim. Celotex, 477 U.S. at 323, 106 S.Ct. at 2552-53. The movant satisfies its initial burden merely “by pointing out to the court that the respondent, having had sufficient opportunity for discovery, has no evidence to support an essential element of his or her case.” Street v. J.C. Bradford Co., 886 F.2d 1472, 1479 (6th Cir.1989).

Once the movant makes a sufficient showing of an absence of evidence to support the non-moving party’s ease, the non-moving party then assumes the burden of coming forward with evidence demonstrating a genuine issue of material fact. Celotex, 477 U.S. at 324-25, 106 S.Ct. at 2553-54. The non-moving. party may not rest on the mere allegations contained in the pleadings, but, rather, must set forth specific facts showing that there is a genuine issue for trial. Fed. R.Civ.P. 56(e). “The mere existence of a scintilla of evidence in support of the [non-moving party’s] position will be insufficient.” Liberty Lobby, 477.U.S. at 252, 106 S.Ct. at 2512. The non-moving party “cannot rely on the hope that the trier of fact will disbelieve the movant’s denial of a disputed fact, but must present affirmative evidence in order to defeat a properly supported motion for summary judgment.” Barnhart v. Pickrel, Schaeffer & Ebeling Co., 12 F.3d 1382, 1389 (6th Cir.1993).

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Norris & Associates, Inc. v. GRM Industries, Inc., 898 F. Supp. 523, 1995 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 12924, 1995 WL 555281 (W.D. Mich. 1995).

898 F. Supp. 523 (Norris & Associates, Inc. v. GRM Industries, Inc.) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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