Kenworth of Birmingham, Inc. v. Langley
Kenworth of Birmingham, Inc. v. Langley
Concurring Opinion
I concur in the main opinion. I note from the record that the plaintiff-buyer Langley not only authorized the Minnesota corporation to deduct his payments from his Alabama checking account but also, more importantly, appointed the Minnesota corporation as his attorney-in-fact for the purpose of obtaining the title certificate to be issued to him by the State of Alabama pursuant to Kenworth's sale of the vehicle to him. This latter participation by the Minnesota corporation is, in my opinion, the sine qua non of a substantial effect of this particular vehicle sale-and-purchase on interstate commerce.
Harwood, J., concurs.
Opinion of the Court
The defendants, Kenworth of Birmingham, Inc. (hereinafter "Kenworth"), and Randy Hall, appeal the trial court's denial of their motion to compel arbitration of the claims brought against them by the plaintiff, Jeff Langley. We reverse and remand.
Langley purchased a used Kenworth tractor-trailer from Kenworth in 1997 for $52,000. As part of the purchase, Langley applied for and obtained credit from Green Tree Financial Corp. (hereinafter "Green Tree"), a St. Paul, Minnesota, corporation. The "Buyers Order" indicated that Green Tree is the lienholder of the tractor-trailer, *Page 290 and the installment sales contract and the security agreement executed in conjunction with the purchase indicated that Green Tree would be the assignee. Langley also executed two different arbitration agreements in connection with the sale and financing of the tractor-trailer.
Subsequently, Langley sued Kenworth and Hall, claiming that they misrepresented to him that the tractor-trailer had not previously sustained any damage other than damage to the sleeper.1 Langley claims that the tractor-trailer had, in fact, previously sustained other damage and that it had been repaired.
After the action was filed, Kenworth and Hall filed a motion to compel arbitration. The trial court denied the motion, and Kenworth and Hall appeal.
Fleetwood Enters., Inc. v. Bruno,"This Court reviews de novo the denial of a motion to compel arbitration. Parkway Dodge, Inc. v. Yarbrough,
779 So.2d 1205 (Ala. 2000). A motion to compel arbitration is analogous to a motion for a summary judgment. TranSouth Fin. Corp. v. Bell,739 So.2d 1110 ,1114 (Ala. 1999). The party seeking to compel arbitration has the burden of proving the existence of a contract calling for arbitration and proving that that contract evidences a transaction affecting interstate commerce. Id. `[A]fter a motion to compel arbitration has been made and supported, the burden is on the non-movant to present evidence that the supposed arbitration agreement is not valid or does not apply to the dispute in question.' Jim Burke Automotive, Inc. v. Beavers,674 So.2d 1260 ,1265 n. 1 (Ala. 1995) (opinion on application for rehearing)."
The FAA provides: "A written provision in . . . a contract evidencing a transaction involving interstate commerce to settle by arbitration a controversy thereafter arising out of such contract or transaction . . . shall be valid, irrevocable, and enforceable. . . ."
This Court has declined to adopt the proposition that the purchase of a used motor vehicle is per se a transaction involving interstate commerce. Southern United Fire Ins. Co. v. Knight,
Jim Burke Auto.,"These factors are: (1) the citizenship of the parties and any affiliation they have with out-of-state entities; (2) tools and *Page 291 equipment used in performance of the contract; (3) allocation of the contract price to cost of services and to cost of materials involved in performance of the contract; (4) subsequent movement of the object of the contract across state lines; and (5) the degree to which the contract at issue was separable from other contracts that are subject to the FAA."
We conclude that Kenworth and Hall met their burden as to these factors. Langley applied for and obtained credit for the purchase through Green Tree, a Minnesota corporation. The "Buyers Order" indicates that Green Tree would be the lienholder of the tractor-trailer and that the installment sales contract would be assigned to it. We therefore hold that Kenworth and Hall have met their burden of demonstrating that the contract in question substantially affected interstate commerce, and the trial court erred in denying the motion to compel arbitration.2 We reverse its order denying the motion to compel arbitration and remand the case for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.
REVERSED AND REMANDED.
See, Lyons, Brown, Woodall, and Stuart, JJ., concur.
Johnstone and Harwood, JJ., concur specially.
Moore, C.J., dissents.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Kenworth of Birmingham, Inc., Randy Hall v. Jeff Langley.
- Cited By
- 21 cases
- Status
- Published