Alcan Forest Products, LP v. A-1 Timber Consultants, Inc.
Alcan Forest Products, LP v. A-1 Timber Consultants, Inc.
Opinion of the Court
ORDER RE FOUR PENDING MOTIONS
This litigation concerns a contract dispute between Plaintiff Alcan Forest Products, LP (“Alcan”) and Defendant A-l Timber Consultants, Inc. (“A-l”). Before the Court are numerous motions, including three motions for summary judgment and a motion to amend the answer. This Order is intended to address these four pending motions. Each has been fully briefed, and on June 21, 2013, the Court heard oral argument on the motions:
I. At Docket 58, A-l moves for summary judgment on all claims made by Alcan.2
2. At Docket 72, Alcan moves for summary judgment on A-l’s affirmative defense of impossibility of performance.3
*1019 3. At Docket 74, A-l moves for leave to amend its answer and to include various affirmative defenses and counterclaims.4
4. At Docket 77, A-l moves for summary judgment on estoppel grounds.5
The remaining motions will be addressed by separate order.
FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND
This ease arises out of an April 2010 contract between Alcan and A-l, in which A-l committed to bring a feller buncher to Southeast Alaska to assist Alcan in harvesting second growth timber at Coon Cove and Long Island.
I. Alcan Purchases Right to Harvest Timber on Long Island and at Coon Cove.
In 2005, Alcan contracted with Cape Fox Corporation for the “exclusive right to cut, remove and appropriate” certain timber in various locations near Ketchikan, Alaska, including Coon Cove.
In 2007, Alcan contracted with K-Ply, Inc., a subsidiary of Klukwan, Inc., for the purchase and sale of timber on Long Island.
II. Alcan Arranges to Harvest, Contracting with Evergreen and Contacting A-l.
In March 2010, Alcan contracted with Evergreen to harvest timber on Long Island.
As noted above, because much of the timber on Long Island and at Coon Cove was second growth, Alcan sought to use a feller buncher. Neither Alcan nor Evergreen had a feller buncher in Southeast Alaska, so Alcan representatives Brian Brown and Eric Nichols reached out to A-1 president, Tom Loushin, to discuss a potential contract for use of A-l’s feller buncher. Brown, Nichols, and Loushin met in Ketchikan, Alaska, in March 2010 to discuss the project.
In his declaration, Nichols states that he inquired as to Loushin’s other projects in Alaska because Alcan would not have contracted with A-l if it had known that A-l intended to engage in other contracts at the same time.
Loushin’s general practice is to visit a job site before contracting to send a feller buneher.
III. Alcan and A-l Contract, and the Harvesting Begins.
On or about April 15, 2010, the parties entered into their contract, pursuant to which A-l would bring a single feller buneher to harvest second growth timber at Long Island and Coon Cove.
The contract provided that Alcan would pay “$220 per cutting hour” for a single “Tigercat 370” feller buneher (the “Tiger-cat”).
The contract included a “time is of the essence” clause. It also included a clause requiring A-l to comply with the Worker’s Compensation Act and provide Alcan with a certificate of compliance.
21. ALCAN’S RIGHT TO TERMINATE — REMEDIES: In case Contractor shall fail to perform any part of this contract by him to be performed promptly and in the manner herein specified, Alcan may, at its option, terminate this contract and all rights of the Contractor hereunder by giving written notice of such termination to Contractor personally or by mail addressed to the Contractor at the address appearing herein. In such event Alcan shall be entitled to take immediate possession of the above described lands and the tim- . ber thereon and all logs cut therefrom and to remove Contractor, his agents, servants and employees from said lands.47
The contract also included a clause in which each party agreed to maintain an on-site representative to assist in “day-today management issues”:
27. ON SITE REPRESENTATION: The parties agree that each of them will have a representative on site authorized to represent them on day-to-day management issues. Each party agrees to keep the on[-]site representative of the other informed of all material developments and all items requiring notice.48
In the contract, Alcan identified Eric Nichols and A-l identified Dan Ward, a feller buncher operator, as on-site representatives.
A-l’s Tigercat arrived at Long Island on April 29, 2010. At his deposition, Ward testified that he had concerns about the operation of the Tigercat “from an hour after being there” because “[t]here was way too much debris on the ground [and] the ground was too soft,” which caused the Tigercat to sink.
Due to mechanical breakdowns, A-l’s feller buncher operated only 25 or 32 out of 69 days between April 29, when the machine arrived at Long Island, and July 6, when Alcan terminated the contract.
Despite the on-site representative clause in the contract, the evidence demonstrates that neither party’s designated on-site representative was present at Long Island every day. Nichols was present at Long Island to “set[ ] the camp up”
After A-l began operating on Long Island, Alcan learned that A-l had contracted with Leisnoi, Inc. for timber operations on Kodiak Island.
IV. After Several Tigercat Breakdowns, Alcan’s “Terminates” the Contract, but Proceeds with Harvesting on Long Island and at Coon Cove.
On July 6, 2010, about 20 days after the mid-June cutting blade failure, Brown wrote a letter on behalf of Alcan to A-l, terminating the contract.
Pursuant to Paragraph 21 of the Contract dated April 15, 2010 between Alcan Forest Products and A-l Timber, you are hereby notified that you have committed a material breach of said contract. The breaches which you have committed include the following:
1) Failure to provide Alcan proof of Worker[s’] Compensation coverage for A-l’s employees in the state of Alaska after repeated requests. (Paragraph 18)
2) Failure to carry on work in a diligent and continuous manner until all activities are complete. (Paragraph 8)71
Loushin’s wife, Sharon Loushin, responded to the letter by email, stating:
I just got back in the office to this letter. We have not given you the Workers[’] compensation because Dan Ward is a Corporate Manager on Salary and is Exempt from the workers!’] comp. As you know the machine has been down several times and we have had to have parts shipped up there. Therefore the work has not been done in a timely manner. This is unfortunate, however if you want us to Cease and Desist from the job, we will be there and get our equipment off the island.72
Tom Loushin also responded:
We understand your [sic] we will send you proof of Alaska workers!’] eom[p] as soon as the ladies return to the office[.] as for the parts for the machine they are being flown from Ketchikan to long island today[.] if you want us to remove are [sic] machine and stop work let me no [sic][.] I will make the arrangements ASAP torn!.]73
A few days later, on July 9, 2010, Brown wrote a letter to Sharon Loushin, stating that Alcan “understand^] that [A-l] acknowledges that it is in default on the contract,” but “[i]f this is not accurate; please notify Alcan immediately. Meanwhile, we will consider the contract terminated.”
On June 30, 2010, Alcan and Evergreen amended their contract to include that Evergreen would “pursue purchase of a Feller Buneher” to harvest at Long Island and Coon Cove.
In October 2010, Alcan purchased an extension on its contract to harvest at Long Island from December 31, 2011 through December 31, 2012.
Alcan filed suit against A-l on or about March 18, 2011, in the Superior Court for the State of Alaska in Ketchikan.
As noted above, there are now numerous motions pending before the Court, but this Order addresses only the motion to amend and the three motions for summary judgment.
The Court has jurisdiction over this action pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1332. In this diversity action, the Court applies state law to substantive legal issues and federal law to procedural issues.
DISCUSSION
I. A-l’s Motion at Docket 74 to Amend the Answer will be Granted in Part and Denied in Part.
At Docket 74, A-l moves for leave to amend its answer to assert the affirmative defenses of statute of frauds, misrepresentation, and impossibility/impracticability of performance, and to assert counterclaims for fraudulent misrepresentation, material misrepresentation, breach of contract, and violations of Alaska’s Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Act. A-l asserts that the Court should permit amendment under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 15 because there was no undue delay, as critical evidence only surfaced after recent disclosures, and because Alcan has been aware of A-l’s allegations of misrepresentation “for a period of months.”
In its motion, A-l describes the conflicting positions of the parties as to whether Loushin wanted to inspect Long Island prior to entering into the contract, and then it focuses on alleged misrepresentations by Alcan concerning its on-site representative. Specifically, A-l states that evidence demonstrating misrepresentations only recently came to light. For example, although the April 2010 contract identified Nichols as Alcan’s on-site representative and Alcan’s December 2011 preliminary disclosures stated that Michael Doig was Alcan’s on-site representative (despite Al-can’s contract with Doig, which stated that he was not an agent),
Pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 15(a)(2), “[t]he court should freely give leave” to amend “when justice so requires.” In deciding “a motion for leave to amend, a district court must consider whether the proposed amendment results from undue delay, is made in bad faith, will cause prejudice to the opposing party, or is a dilatory tactic.”
Here, the Scheduling and Planning Order, issued on July 19, 2011, states: “Motions to ... amend the pleadings subsequent to the date of this order must be served and filed not later than January 2, 2012. Thereafter, ... pleadings [may be] amended only upon leave of court and for good cause shown.”
A-l has failed to demonstrate the requisite “good cause.” A-l’s request is unreasonably tardy. Through diligent discovery, A-l could have earlier explored its concerns about Loushin’s inability to visit the sites and Alcan’s on-site representative. Since the time that Ward operated the Tigercat on Long Island, A-l could have been aware that the contract identi
With respect to alleged misrepresentations concerning Alcan’s relationship with Evergreen and Alcan’s harvest plans, A-l presents no argument that it made timely discovery requests to uncover this information. A-l has known of Alcan’s ownership interest in Evergreen since, at the latest, August 2012.
In addition, amendment at this time would be prejudicial. When the motion was filed, this litigation had been pending for almost two years. Allowing amendment would likely require that the Court reopen discovery and alter the trial date, resulting in unreasonable additional expense and further delays.
However, with respect to the affirmative defense of impossibility/impracticability, the parties have conducted the relevant discovery and Alcan has moved for summary judgment on the defense. Alcan will
For the foregoing reasons, A-l’s motion to amend the complaint at Docket 74 will be granted with respect to the impossibility/impracticability defense, but will be otherwise denied.
II. Motions for Summary Judgment.
A. Standard of Review.
Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 56(a) directs a court to “grant summary judgment if the movant shows that there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.” The burden of showing the absence of a genuine dispute of material fact lies with the moving party.
When considering a motion for summary judgment, a court must accept as true all evidence presented by the non-moving party and draw “all justifiable inferences” in the non-moving party’s favor.
B. A-l’s Motion at Docket 58 for Summary Judgment Will Be Denied.
Alcan has identified six categories of damages sought in this litigation: (1) delay damages in the amount of $129,166.60; (2) the cost of the extension of the Long Island contract in the amount of $50,000.00; (3) depreciation of the Madill in the amount of $80,000.00; (4) transportation of the Madill in the amount of $17,059.95; (5) the sum paid for the new contract for Coon Cove in the amount of $333,007.00; and (6) the cost of additional hand cutters to harvest Coon Cove in the amount of $125,450.00.
A-l moves for summary judgment on all claims, arguing that Alcan’s alleged damages are not recoverable because Alcan
For the reasons discussed herein, numerous material questions of fact preclude the entry of summary judgment.
1. Material Questions of Fact Remain as to Whether Alcan’s Damages Should he Reduced by its Profits.
A-l argues that Alcan cannot recover any damages because Alcan profited from any delay caused by A-l’s alleged breach of contract.
Contract damages are intended to compensate an injured party so that it is put in the same position that it would have been in had the breaching party performed the contract.
Under Alaska law, in some circumstances an injured party’s ability to recover may be limited by profits made after the alleged breach of contract. In this diversity action, Alaska’s substantive law is
On appeal, MEG argued that the jury instructions contained errors with respect to mitigation and calculating damages.
Alcan asserts that Gildersleeve is not applicable because that case’s “loss avoided” rule applies only where there is a “substitute transaction,” and Alcan asserts that it never entered into a substitute transaction to avoid the losses caused by A-l’s default.
The Court notes that other jurisdictions may follow a rule that might disregard profit differentials, as summarized by Cor-bin on Contracts: “Gains made by the injured party on other transactions after the breach are not to be deducted from damages that are otherwise recoverable, unless such gains could not have been made had there been no breach.”
Although Gildersleeve is binding, the Court nevertheless concludes that material questions of fact remain precluding summary judgment. As noted above, the parties appear to disagree on whether Alcan’s subsequent harvesting activities were done in an effort to minimize Alcan’s losses resultant from A-l’s alleged breach. And the parties disagree on when the logs were actually sold and whether Alcan’s ultimate profits were increased or decreased as a result of the delayed harvest.
Alcan seeks damages for Evergreen’s costs of operating the Long Island camp for the period prior to July 6, 2010 when A-l’s Tigercat was nonoperational. During that time, Evergreen employees performed “non-logging related jobs to keep busy.”
In this diversity action, this issue must be analyzed applying state law. Alaska precedent provides some guidance on the recovery of these damages. In Quality Asphalt Paving, Inc. v. State, the Department of Transportation (“DOT”) contracted for plaintiff construction company to widen a road.
State v. Northwestern Construction Co.
The parties also discuss Precision Pine & Timber, Inc. v. United States, a Federal Circuit Court of Appeals decision.
Here, material questions of fact remain concerning whether Alcan can recover Evergreen’s fixed costs when the Tigercat was not operational. Fundamentally, the parties dispute whether and to what extent the camp was actually idle when the Tigercat was not operational. This alone precludes summary judgment on this element of damages. The fundamental inquiry is whether and to what extent the damages sought are consequential and foreseeable damages of the alleged breach; these are questions for the trier of fact.
3. Material Questions of Fact Remain Concerning “Post-Termination” Damages and Mitigation.
Alcan seeks damages for the extension of the Long Island contract and the new Coon Cove contract, asserting that these contracts were only necessary because of A-l’s breach.
The Court first addresses the termination issue. On July 6, Alcan sent to A-l an email titled “Notice of Termination,” stating that, pursuant to paragraph 21, Alcan “hereby terminates” the contract.
“Termination” occurs when either party, under a power created by agreement or law, puts an end to the contract otherwise than for its breach. On “termination” all obligations that are still executory on both sides are discharged, but a right based on a prior breach of performance survives.159
A-l also cites to United Airlines v. Good Taste.
Alcan maintains that the U.C.C. does not apply because the contract at issue was not for the sale of goods; rather, it was for service of a feller buncher.
This Court agrees that the U.C.C. is not applicable to this services contract. Furthermore, Corbin on Contracts specifically recognizes that the terms “termination,” “cancellation,” and “discharge” are often used interchangeably, and it suggests that courts “should never assume that contracting parties knew and distinguished accurately between the terms.”
Of course, after “termination,” Alcan still had a duty to mitigate damages, and material questions of fact in that regard preclude summary judgment on mitigation damages. For example, Al-can asserts that because of A-l’s breach, Evergreen purchased the Madill to provide services to Alcan. But it is unclear why Alcan seeks damages for two years of Madill depreciation (during which time the machine was allegedly operating effectively) to complete a contract that A-l intended to complete in approximately five months. And Alcan asserts that it would not have required the new Coon Cove contract but for A-l’s breach.
Ip. Alcan Presented Sufficient Proof of Damages to Survive Summary Judgment.
A-l also argues that Alcan has failed to prove its loss with reasonable certainty.
A party seeking damages “need only prove its damages to a ‘reasonable certainty.’ ”
For all of the foregoing reasons, A-l’s motion at Docket 58 for summary judgment will be denied.
C. Alcan's Motion at Docket 72 for Summary Judgment on A-l’s Affirmative Defense of Impossibility Will Be Denied.
The Court has held that A-l may file an amended answer asserting the affirmative defense that “performance [of the contract was] excused by the doctrine of impossibility or impracticability of performance.”
A-l opposes summary judgment, arguing that the ground conditions were not foreseeable, and that Brown and Nichols refused to take Loushin to see the sites.
Alaska courts recognize the affirmative defense of “[[Impossibility of performance ... as a valid defense to an action for breach of contract when the promisor’s performance becomes commercially impracticable as a result of the frustration of a mutual expectation of the contracting parties.”
(1) an event occurred which made the [party’s] performance impracticable because of extreme and unreasonable difficulty (expense) (injury) (loss) to [party]; and
the event which occurred was not reasonably foreseeable by the parties when the contract was made.
Comment (b) to the Restatement (Second) Contracts § 261 explains: “In order for a supervening event to discharge a duty under this Section, the non-occurrence of that event must have been a ‘basic assumption’ on which both parties made the contract.”
The Court has reviewed the evidence submitted by each party and concludes that material questions of fact preclude summary judgment on this defense. There remain questions of fact concerning whether the ground conditions at Long Island were foreseeable, and whether they made A-l’s performance impracticable. The parties also dispute whether Alcan precluded A-l from visiting the sites, or whether A-l chose to forego the inspection and assume the risk. Alcan’s argument that Loushin constructed the terms of the contract to account for risks associated with poor ground conditions is compelling,
However, the Court finds unpersuasive A-l’s argument that Alcan’s alleged failure to maintain an on-site representative or to provide decent working conditions support the affirmative defense of impossibility/impracticability. These claims may have supported a timely breach of contract claim or may support A-l’s estoppel argument, but they do not constitute the type of “event” that gives rise to an impossibility/impracticability defense.
For the foregoing reasons, Alcan’s motion at Docket 72 for summary judgment on A-l’s impossibility/impraeticability defense will be denied.
D. A-l’s Motion at Docket 77 for Summary Judgment on A-l’s Affirmative Defense of Estoppel Will Be Denied.
At Docket 77, A-l moves for summary judgment, arguing that Alcan is estopped from seeking damages for A-l’s alleged breach of contract because of “Alcan’s pri- or and continuing breach” by failing to maintain an on-site representative at Long Island.
A party seeking equitable estoppel must demonstrate “the assertion of a position by conduct or word, reasonable reliance thereon by another party, and resulting prejudice.”
The Court has reviewed the evidence submitted by each party. There is no question that the first element of the defense is satisfied. The parties contracted to each maintain “a representative on site” to assist in “day-to-day management.”
But material questions of fact remain with respect to the other two elements of estoppel, that is, whether A-l relied upon this representation in entering into the contract and whether that reliance caused prejudice. Loushin asserts that A-1 “would not have agreed to the contract”
Accordingly, A-l’s motion for summary judgment on estoppel grounds will be denied.
CONCLUSION
For the foregoing reasons:
1. A-l’s motion at Docket 58 for summary judgment is DENIED.
2. Alcan’s motion at Docket 72 for summary judgment on A-l’s affirmative defense of impossibility is DENIED.
3. A-l’s motion at Docket 74 for leave to amend its answer and to include various affirmative defenses and counterclaims is GRANTED in part as to the affirmative defense of impossibility/impracticability and otherwise DENIED.
4. A-l’s motion at Docket 77 for summary judgment on estoppel grounds is DENIED.
At Docket 111, the parties requested a settlement conference, and the Court granted that request.
. Docket 147 (Minute Entry).
. See Docket 58 (A-l MSJ); Docket 71 (Alcan Opp. MSJ); Docket 88 (A-l Reply MSJ).
.See Docket 72 (Alcan MSJ Impossibility); Docket 97 (A-l Opp. Impossibility); Docket 115 (Alcan Reply Impossibility).
. See Docket 74 (A-l Mot. Amend); Docket 93 (Alcan Opp. Amend); Docket 107 (A-l Reply Amend).
. See Docket 77 (A-l MSJ Estoppel); Docket 114 (Alcan Opp. Estoppel); Docket 134 (A-l Reply Estoppel).
. See Docket 1-2 (Complaint). A feller buncher is a machine that grasps a standing tree at its base, cuts the tree at ground level, and lays the tree in a pile or "bunch.” This system may reduce the number of human timber fallers on a job. See Docket 59-9 ¶¶ 3-4 (3/5/13 Loushin Deck).
. Docket 38-5 at 16:14-17:2 (8/15/12 Brown Dep.).
. Docket 66-1 ¶ 12 (3/25/13 Nichols Deck).
. Docket 38-5 at 17:15-20 (8/15/12 Brown Dep.).
.Docket 49-1 at 14:19-15:14 (8/15/12 Loushin Dep.).
. Docket 59-1 (5/27/05 Timber Cutting Right Contract, between Cape Fox Corp. and Al-can).
. Id.; Docket 66-1 ¶¶ 32-33 (3/25/13 Nichols Deck).
. Docket 66-1 ¶ 34 (3/25/13 Nichols Deck).
. Id. ¶ 35; Docket 59-1 at 7 (12/31/09 Am. No. 2 to Timber Cutting Right Contract).
. See Docket 59-2 (Am. No. 1 to Long Island 2007 Timber Sale Agreement between Alcan and K Ply, Inc.).
. See Docket 66-1 ¶¶ 28-29 (3/25/13 Nichols Deck).
. Id.
. Id. ¶ 28.
. See Docket 59-2 (Am. No. 1 to Long Island 2007 Timber Sale Agreement between Alcan and K Ply, Inc.).
. Docket 59-3 (3/17/10 Logging and Road Construction Contract; Long Island Timber Sale, between Alcan and Evergreen).
. Id.; Docket 38-7 at 44:4-14 (8/14/12 Nichols Dep.).
. Docket 58 at 4 (A-l MSJ); Docket 38-7 at 44:4-14 (8/14/12 Nichols Dep.).
. Docket 59-3 at Ex. A (3/17/10 Logging and Road Construction Contract; Long Island Timber Sale, between Alcan and Evergreen).
.Docket 66-1 ¶ 72 (3/25/13 Nichols Deck).
. Docket 58 at 13 (A-l MSJ); see also Docket 38-5 at 29 (Brown Dep.) (noting that prior to 2010, "[A-l] w[as]n’t in any hurry to harvest [Long Island]."); Docket 59-10 ¶ 5 (3/5/13 Jendro Deck).
. Docket 38-7 at 37:11-22 (8/14/12 Nichols Dep.).
. Docket 71 at 4 (Alcan Opp. MSJ); Docket 66-1 ¶¶ 25-26 (3/25/13 Nichols Deck).
. Docket 66-1 ¶ 40 (3/25/13 Nichols Deck).
. Id. ¶¶ 39-40, 42.
. AM 38.
. Docket 71 at 7 (Alcan Opp. MSJ); Docket 66-1 ¶¶ 47, 50-51, 54 (3/25/13 Nichols Decl.).
. Docket 66-1 ¶ 57 (3/25/13 Nichols Decl.).
. Id. ¶¶ 57-58.
. Docket 66-5 at 62:14-65:20 (8/15/12 Loushin Dep.).
. Id. at 63:6-64:9.
. Docket 73-3 at 29:6-18 (8/15/12 Loushin Dep.).
. Docket 49-1 at 28:17-23, 33:13-16 (8/15/12 Loushin Dep.); Docket 66-1 ¶ 53 (3/25/13 Nichols Decl.).
. Docket 98-1 ¶ 4 (5/1/13 Loushin Deck); Docket 49-1 at 29 (8/15/12 Loushin Dep.).
. See Docket 66-1 ¶¶ 48-49 (3/25/13 Nichols Deck); Docket 66-2 at 49 (8/14/12 Nichols Dep.).
. Docket 38-10 (Contract).
. Id. ¶ 2.
. Id. at Ex. B (Contract Price Schedule).
. Docket 98-1 ¶ 4 (5/1/13 Loushin Deck).
. Id.; see also Docket 73-3 at 31:21-32:14 (8/15/12 Loushin Dep.).
. Docket 72 at 4 (Alcan MSJ Impossibility).
. Docket 38-10 ¶¶ 8, 18 (Contract).
. Id. ¶21.
. Id. ¶ 27.
. Id.
. Docket 38-11 at 11:20-24 (9/22/12 Ward Dep.).
. Id. at 12:11-19 ("[U]ntil the first breakdown I couldn’t call Tom if I had wanted to.... There was no communication with nobody.”).
. Id.
. There is some dispute concerning whether the Tigercat was operating between June 16 and 22. The motion for summary judgment states that the Tigercat’s cutting blade failed on June 15, 2010. But A-l’s Notice Regarding Changed Facts Based on Newly-Produced
. Docket 66-7 (Interrogatory Answers).
. Docket 38-11 at 12:20-23, 13:11-14:6 (9/22/12 Ward Dep.).
. Docket 66-7 (7/26/12 Interrogatory Answers).
. As noted in footnote 53, there is some dispute concerning this date.
. Docket 66-7 (7/26/12 Interrogatory Answers). The "termination” is discussed in more detail below.
. Docket 66-1 ¶ 76 (3/25/13 Nichols Deck).
. Id. ¶¶ 77-79.
. Docket 38-11 at 19:5-19 (9/22/12 Ward Dep.) ("[A]ny time a plane would come in[,] people would run for the float plane to get out of there because there was no communication and because of the conditions.”).
. Docket 38-7 at 53:23-54:1 (8/14/12 Nichols Dep.).
. Id. at 56:6-8 (8/14/12 Nichols Dep.); Docket 66-1 ¶ 68 (3/25/13 Nichols Deck).
. Docket 66-1 ¶¶ 68-70 (3/25/13 Nichols Deck).
. Docket 94-2 ¶3 (4/29/13 Nichols Deck). There is some dispute concerning precisely how many days Nichols was present, but there is no doubt that he was absent many days.
. Docket 94-1 (7/26/12 A-l Response to Plaintiff's First Discovery Requests); Docket 85-3 at 34:8-35:1 (9/22/12 Ward Dep.). It appears Ward was only absent when there was a problem with the machine because of his efforts to repair the machine.
. Docket 38-6 at 82:18-83:8 (8/15/12 Brown Dep.).
. Docket 58 at 7 (A-l MSJ); Docket 38-11 at 90:12-92:13 (9/22/12 Ward Dep.).
. Docket 38-11 at 90:12-92:13 (9/22/12 Ward Dep.). At Ward’s deposition, in response to a question concerning whether Al-can would assist in transporting people, equipment, or parts between Ketchikan and Long Island, Ward stated that "Alcan wouldn’t help with anything.” For example, Ward requested assistance from Brown, who had a boat, in transporting a disk for the Tigercat, and although Brown provided “a couple of names ... [,] he wanted no part of helping [Ward].”
. Docket 66-11 (7/6/10 Termination Letter Alcan to A-l).
. Id.
. Docket 66-12 (7/7/10 Email Sharon Loushin to Nancy Brown).
. Docket 66-14 (7/7/10 Email Tom Loushin to Nancy Brown).
. Docket 59-7 (7/9/10 Letter Brian Brown to Sharon Loushin).
. Docket 59-8 (7/9/10 Letter Sharon Loushin to Brian Brown).
. Docket 59-3 (6/30/10 Am. 1 to Long Island Logging Contract); Docket 66-1 ¶¶ 154-56 (3/25/13 Nichols Deck).
. Docket 59-6 (7/1/10 Hermann Brothers Invoice for Madill); Docket 66-1 ¶¶ 152-53 (3/25/13 Nichols Deck).
. Docket 66-10 ¶¶ 6, 14 (3/25/13 Barnes Deck); see also Docket 55 at 6 (2/15/13 Alcan Witness List).
. Docket 59-5 at 19:18-21:1 (10/1/12 Per Dep.); see also Docket 61 at 11 (3/7/13 A-l Witness List).
. Docket 59-5 at 21:6-22:10, 23:3-23:20 (10/1/12 Perry Dep.).
. Docket 58 at 3 (A-l MSJ); Docket 59-2 (Am. No. 1 to Long Island 2007 Timber Sale Agreement); Docket 66-1 ¶ 81 (3/25/13 Nichols Deck).
. Docket 66-1 ¶¶ 11, 22 (3/25/13 Nichols Deck)
. Id.n 107-12.
. Id. ¶¶ 105-113.
. Docket 1-2 (Complaint).
. Id.
. Docket 1 (Notice of Removal).
. Nitco Holding Corp. v. Boujikian, 491 F.3d 1086, 1089 (9th Cir. 2007) (“Because this case arose under the district court's diversity jurisdiction, 28 U.S.C. § 1332, we apply state substantive law, but we apply federal procedural law.”).
. Docket 74 at 2-3 (A-l Mot. Amend). At oral argument, A-l argued that Alcan had been playing "hide the ball” with discovery, exhibiting a consistent pattern of nondisclosure.
. Id. at 2; Docket 107 at 5 (A-l Reply Amend).
. Docket 74 at 3-4 (A-l Mot. Amend); Docket 75-1 (12/19/11 Alcan Preliminary Disclosures) (identifying Doig as an "Alcan Representative”); Docket 75-2 (3/21/10 Service Agreement between Alcan and Doig) (stating Doig is not an agent).
. Docket 38-7 at 54:10-13 (8/14/12 Nichols Dep.)
. Docket 66-1 ¶¶ 62, 68 (3/25/13 Nichols Deck).
. Docket 74-1 at 12-13 ¶¶ 32(a), (k) (A-l Proposed Amended Answer).
. Docket 93 (Alcan Opp. Amend). Alcan did agree that A-l could raise the impossibility defense without seeking leave of the court. Id. at 1, n. 1.
. Id.
. Docket 107 at 4 (A-l Reply Amend).
. Chodos v. W. Publ. Co., 292 F.3d 992, 1003 (9th Cir. 2002) (affirming denial of leave to amend complaint); see also AmerisourceBergen Corp. v. Dialysist W., Inc., 465 F.3d 946, 957 (9th Cir. 2006).
. AmerisourceBergen, 465 F.3d at 957 (affirming denial of leave to amend a reply, where motion to amend was filed fifteen months after defendant learned of claim but still within pretrial scheduling order’s deadlines for amendment).
. In re W. States Wholesale Nat. Gas Antitrust Litig., 715 F.3d 716, 736 (9th Cir. 2013).
. Id. at 736 (quoting lohnson v. Mammoth Rec., Inc., 975 F.2d 604, 609 (9th Cir. 1992)).
. Docket 14 (7/19/11 Scheduling Order).
. See W. States Wholesale Nat. Gas Antitrust Litig., 715 F.3d at 736.
. The Court addresses infra A-l’s motion for summary judgment on estoppel, which further details the on-site representative issue.
. See Docket 37 at 2 (A-l Mot. Compel Trans-Pac) (discussing ownership interests); Docket 38-7 at 8:19-14 (8/14/12 Nichols Dep.).
. See Docket 38-13 (6/5/12 Preliminary Disclosures); see also Docket 90-3 (7/25/12 Alcan Responses to First Discovery Requests) (identifying Evergreen as a "person!] who w[as] hired to work or worked on the Coon Cove or the Long Island timber harvest projects for Alcan” during the relevant time period).
. Docket 14 (7/19/11 Scheduling Order); Docket 25 (5/21/12 Pretrial Order); Docket 36 (11/5/12 Order Granting Joint Motion to Continue Trial).
. See Docket 37 at 7 (A-l Mot. Compel Trans-Pac), in which A-l acknowledges that Alcan produced some documents. The Court granted in part and denied in part that motion to compel, which is not relevant to the currently pending motions. See Docket 51 (Order on Mot. Compel Trans-Pac).
. See Docket 76 (A-l Mot. Compel Records); Docket 147 (Minute Entry). The Court denied that motion as moot because, by that date, Alcan had disclosed the requested records.
. Docket 107 at 4 (A-l Reply Amend).
. Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 325, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986).
. Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 248-49, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986).
. Id. at 248-49, 106 S.Ct. 2505.
. Id. (citing First Nat'l Bank of Arizona v. Cities Serv. Co., 391 U.S. 253, 88 S.Ct. 1575, 20 L.Ed.2d 569 (1968)).
. Id. at 255, 106 S.Ct. 2505 (citing Adickes v. S.H. Kress & Co., 398 U.S. 144, 158-59, 90 S.Ct. 1598, 26 L.Ed.2d 142 (1970)).
. Id. at 248, 106 S.Ct. 2505.
. Scott v. Harris, 550 U.S. 372, 380, 127 S.Ct. 1769, 167 L.Ed.2d 686 (2007) (citing Matsushita Elec. Indus. Co. v. Zenith Radio Corp., 475 U.S. 574, 586-587, 106 S.Ct. 1348, 89 L.Ed.2d 538 (1986)).
. Anderson, 477 U.S. at 249, 106 S.Ct. 2505.
. Docket 71 at 14 (Alcan Opp. MSJ).
. Docket 58 (A-l MSJ).
. Docket 58 at 15 (A-l MSJ).
. Id. at 13.
. Id. at 13, 23; Docket 59-10 ¶¶ 3-5 (3/5/13 Jendro Deck).
. Docket 71 at 29 (Alcan Opp. MSJ); Docket 66-1 ¶¶ 130-134 (3/25/13 Nichols Decl.).
. Docket 71 at 30 (Alcan Opp. MSJ). In addition, Alcan asserts that Jendro's report is not admissible as an expert report and that his calculations and conclusions are based on faulty assumptions. The admissibility of Jendro’s report, including the alleged inaccuracy of facts that he relied upon, is the subject of a separate motion, filed at Docket 82.
. Murray E. Gildersleeve Logging Co. v. N. Timber Corp., 670 P.2d 372, 377 (Alaska 1983); see also Alaska Civil Pattern Jury Instruction ("ACPJI”) 24.09A.
. Am. Computer Inst. v. State, 995 P.2d 647, 655 (Alaska 2000) (quoting Restatement (Second) of Contracts § 347).
. See ACPJI 24.09A.
. See ACPJI 24.10; ACPJI 20.18A & B.
. Gildersleeve, 670 P.2d at 378.
. Id.
. Id. at 380.
. Id.
. Id. at 381.
. See Docket 71 at 25 (Alcan Opp. MSJ) (discussing Restatement (Second) Contracts § 347, concerning “actual loss caused by breach”).
. Gildersleeve, 670 P.2d at 379.
. 11-57 Corbin on Contracts § 57.13; see also KGM Harvesting Co. v. Fresh Network, 36 Cal.App.4th 376, 382, 42 Cal.Rptr.2d 286 (Cal.Ct.App. 1995) (declining to reduce damages for U.C.C. sale of goods because buyer was later able to make a profit, explaining "[w]hat the buyer chooses to do with that bargain is not relevant to the determination of damages under section 2712”).
. Docket 58 at 13, 23 (A-l MSJ); Docket 59-10 ¶¶ 3-5 (3/5/13 Jendro Decl.); Docket 71 at 29 (Alcan Opp. MSJ); Docket 66-1 ¶ 130 (3/25/13 Nichols Deck).
. Docket 71 at 15-16 (Alcan Opp. MSJ).
. Docket 88 at 3, 8 (A-l Reply MSJ).
. Quality Asphalt Paving, Inc. v. State, 71 P.3d 865 (Alaska 2003).
. Id.
. State v. Nw. Constr., Co., 741 P.2d 235 (Alaska 1987).
. Id. at 240 (emphasis in original).
. Id. at 240-41 (citing Bennett v. United States, 178 Ct.Cl. 61, 371 F.2d 859, 863-64 (1967); Elias v. Wright, 276 F. 908, 910 (2d Cir. 1921); A.T. Klemens & Son v. Reber Plumbing & Heating Co., 139 Mont. 115, 360 P.2d 1005, 1011 (Mont. 1961)).
. Precision Pine & Timber, Inc. v. United States, 596 F.3d 817 (Fed.Cir. 2010).
. Id. at 834.
. Id. at 834.
. Docket 71 at 4, 7 (Alcan Opp. MSJ); Docket 66-1 ¶¶ 9, 11, 22, 113 (3/25/13 Nichols Deck).
. Docket 71 at 19 (Alcan Opp. MSJ).
. Docket 58 at 20-21 (A-l MSJ); Docket 88 at 8-9 (A-l Reply MSJ).
. Docket 88 at 5 (A-l Reply MSJ).
. Docket 58 at 13 (A-l MSJ).
. Docket 88 at 6 (A-l Reply MSJ).
. Docket 59-10 ¶ 7 (3/5/13 Jendro Deck).
. Docket 58 at 12 (A-l MSJ).
. Docket 66-11 (7/6/10 Termination Letter Alcan to A-l).
. Id. ¶ 21
. Docket 58 at 20 (A-l MSJ) (citing AS § 45.02.106).
. Id. at 20-21 (discussing United Airlines, Inc. v. Good Taste, Inc., 982 P.2d 1259 (Alaska 1999)).
. Docket 71 at 43-44 (Alcan Opp. MSJ).
. AS § 45.02.106.
. Docket 71 at 43-44 (Alcan Opp. MSJ) (discussing 4 A. Corbin, Corbin on Contracts § 946 (I960)).
. 13-67 Corbin on Contracts § 67.2.
. Compare Docket 59-3 ¶21 (3/17/10 Logging and Road Construction Contract; Long Island Timber Sale, between Alcan and Evergreen), which provides that the right to terminate "shall not be deemed exclusive but shall be in addition to all other remedies at law or in equity which Alcan may have in connection with this contract and the breach thereof.”
. Whether Alcan can recover post-termination damages at all will depend on whether it can demonstrate that it properly invoked the termination clause, only after A-l "fail[ed] to perform any part of th[e] contract ... to be performed promptly and in the manner ... specified----” See Odom v. Lee, 999 P.2d 755 (Alaska 2000) (whether breach is material is question of fact).
. Docket 66-1 ¶ 113 (3/25/13 Nichols Deck).
. Docket 58 at 19, 20 (A-l MSJ).
. Docket 66-13 (3/27/13 Brown Deck).
. Docket 38-6 at 114:4 (8/15/12 Brown Dep.).
. See Docket 66-4 (8/15/12 Brown Dep.); Docket 66-13 (3/27/13 Brown Deck).
. Nw. Const., Co., 741 P.2d at 237.
. Ben Lomond, Inc. v. Schwartz, 915 P.2d 632, 636 (Alaska 1996); see also Borgen v. A & M Motors, Inc., 273 P.3d 575, 592 (Alaska 2012) (testimony providing a “range of values on which the jury could have based its damages verdict” was sufficient to uphold award of damages).
. See Docket 74-1 (A-l Proposed Amended Answer).
. A-l did not raise the affirmative defense of impossibility or impracticability in its original answer. See Docket 11 (A-l Answer). Alcan's motion for summary judgment attempts to distinguish impossibility and impracticability, moving for summary judgment on impossibility and noting that A-l has not claimed impracticability. Docket 72 at 9 n. 79 (Alcan MSJ Impossibility) ("A-l has not claimed ‘commercial impracticability’ ....”). A-l now seeks to assert both defenses. See Docket 74-1 (A-l Proposed Amended Answer). Because Alaska case law defines impossibility to incorporate impracticability, see Gildersleeve, 670 P.2d at 375, the distinction is irrelevant for purposes of this motion.
. Docket 72 at 9 (Alcan MSJ Impossibility) (discussing U.S. Smelting, Ref. and Min. Co. v. Wigger, 684 P.2d 850, 857 (Alaska 1984), in which contract provided for termination if mining under contract was found to be no longer profitable).
. See id. (discussing Currington v. lohnson, 685 P.2d 73 (Alaska 1984) and State v. Carpenter, 869 P.2d 1181, 1183-84 (Alaska 1994)). In Carpenter, a debtor farmer failed to repay a loan and argued that performance was excused because farming his land was not profitable under the loan contract. The Alaska Supreme Court concluded that the doctrine of impracticability did not excuse performance. The supreme court noted that the contract contained a clause which specifically recognized the State’s disclaimer as to the soil’s condition. And the case was before the supreme court on review of a directed verdict after a bench trial, not on review of an order granting summary judgment. For
. Docket 72 at 9 n. 79 (Alcan MSJ Impossibility); Docket 66-10 ¶7 (3/25/13 Barnes Decl.).
. Docket 98-1 ¶ 4 (5/1/13 Loushin Decl.); Docket 49-1 at 29 (8/15/12 Loushin Dep.).
. Docket 97 at 9-10 (A-l Opp. Impossibility)-
. Gildersleeve, 670 P.2d at 375 (citing N. Corp. v. Chugach Elec. Ass’n, 518 P.2d 76, 80-82 (Alaska 1974)) (affirming dismissal of impossibility defense because ''[performance was not rendered impracticable, or even particularly difficult”).
. Restatement (Second) Contracts § 261, comment b (1981).
. Agen v. Dep’t of Rev., 945 P.2d 1215, 1220 (Alaska 1997) ("[T]he burden of proof of an affirmative defense is on the party raising the defense.”) (citations omitted).
. See Docket 72 at 9 (Alcan MSJ Impossibility).
. See Docket 66-1 ¶¶ 97-102 (3/25/13 Nichols Decl.); Docket 66-10 ¶¶ 6, 14 (3/25/13 Barnes Decl.)
. Docket 59-5 at 19:18-22:13 (10/1/12 Perry Dep.).
. Docket 77 at 3 (A-l MSJ on Estoppel).
. Docket 77 at 3 (A-l MSJ on Estoppel); see also Docket 66-8 at 13:12-20 (9/22/12 Ward Dep.); Docket 75-2 (3/21/10 Service Agreement between Alcan and Doig Enterprises). A-l also argues that Alcan breached its contract by not offering to use a vessel to bring a replacement saw disk to Long Island. But Alcan directs the Court to the contract, which does not require Alcan to provide equipment transportation. Docket 38-10 (Contract).
. Sidney v. Allstate Ins. Co., 187 P.3d 443, 451 (Alaska 2008) (quoting Maynard v. State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co., 902 P.2d 1328, 1330 (Alaska 1995)).
. Agen v. Dep’t of Rev., 945 P.2d 1215, 1220.
. Docket 38-10 ¶ 27 (Contract).
. Docket 38-7 at 53:23-54:1, 56:6-8 (8/14/12 Nichols Dep.); Docket 94-2 ¶3 (4/29/13 Nichols Deck).
. Docket 85-3 at 34:8-35:1 (9/22/12 Ward Dep.); Docket 94-1 (A-l Response to Plaintiff's First Discovery Requests).
. Docket 80-1 (4/18/13 Loushin Deck).
. Docket 38-11 at 12:11-23, 13:11-23 (9/22/12 Ward Dep.).
. See, e.g., Docket 94-2 ¶ 7 (4/29/13 Nichols Deck); Docket 114 at 11 (Alcan Opp. MSJ Estoppel).
. Docket 38-11 at 12:20-23, 13:11-14:6 (9/22/12 Ward Dep.).
. Docket 77 at 5-6 (A-l MSJ on Estoppel).
. Because the Court denies summary judgment, it is not necessary to address Alcan’s argument that it has a constitutional right to have this claim heard by a jury. See Docket 114 at 2-3 (Alcan Opp. MSJ Estoppel).
. Docket 147 (Minute Entry).
Reference
- Full Case Name
- ALCAN FOREST PRODUCTS, LP, an Alaska Limited Partnership v. A-1 TIMBER CONSULTANTS, INC., a Washington Corporation
- Cited By
- 1 case
- Status
- Published