Nabors v. Auto Sports Unlimited, Inc.

• Decision Date: 07 February 2007
• Docket Number: No. 06-10221.,06-10221.
• Parties: Anthony NABORS, Plaintiff, v. AUTO SPORTS UNLIMITED, INC., and Charles Sutter, Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Eastern District of Michigan

475 F.Supp.2d 646

Anthony NABORS, Plaintiff, v. AUTO SPORTS UNLIMITED, INC., and Charles Sutter, Defendants.

No. 06-10221.

United States District Court, E.D. Michigan, Southern Division.

February 7, 2007.

Adam G. Taub, Lyngklip & Taub, Southfield, MI, Thomas M. Loeb, Farmington Hills, MI, for Plaintiff.

Eric S. Bert, Buckman, Macdonald, Jeffrey W. Buckman, McDowell & Buckman, Holland, MI, for Defendants.

Charles Sutter, Shelby Township, MI, pro se.

OPINION AND ORDER

ZATKOFF, District Judge.

I. INTRODUCTION

This matter is before the Court upon Defendant Auto Sports Unlimited, Inc.'s, Motion for Summary Judgment. See Docket # 18. Plaintiff filed his response on January 15, 2006, and Defendant has since replied. The Court finds that the facts and legal arguments are adequately presented in the parties' papers and the decision process would not be significantly aided by oral argument. Therefore, pursuant to E.D. LR 7.1(e)(2), it is hereby ORDERED that the motion be resolved on the briefs submitted. For the reasons set forth below, Defendant's motion will be GRANTED.

II. BACKGROUND

This case arises under the Odometer Act, 49 U.S.C. §§ 32701-32711. Plaintiff purchased a used Jeep from Defendant Charles Sutter in October 2005; however, the facts of this case date back to March 30, 2005. (See Def.'s Ex. A.) On that date, Auto Sports Unlimited, Inc. ("Auto Sports"), purchased the Jeep from State Farm Mutual Auto Insurance Company at an auto auction in Indiana. (See id.) Auto Sports is a used auto parts dealer which recently opened a used car dealership in Holland, Michigan. Auto Sports took an Indiana title to the Jeep, which was branded as salvaged.¹ Subsequently, Auto Sports advertised the Jeep for sale over the internet, which drew the attention of Defendant Sutter. Mr. Sutter had previously purchased a salvaged motorcycle from Auto Sports.

In July 2005, Sutter, who lives in Clinton Township, Michigan, drove to Holland to purchase the Jeep. While at Auto Sports' dealership, Mr. Sutter met with Auto Sports' sales representative Justin Misner, who showed him the Jeep, including the mileage. (See Sutter Dep. at 51-54.) Satisfied with the Jeep, and aware that it was branded as salvaged on the title, Mr. Sutter proceeded to close the sale. Mr. Misner presented Mr. Sutter with the appropriate paperwork including the Indiana title, which showed the correct mileage of 61,836 miles, and the fact that it was considered a salvaged vehicle. (See id. at 18, 100; Def.'s Ex. D.) However, because Auto Sports' title clerk, Wendy Polinsky, was not present at the time, Mr. Sutter was not able to complete all of the paper work on that day. (See Misner Aff. ¶ 6.) Nevertheless, Mr. Sutter paid Auto Sports' $4500 for the Jeep and later had it towed to his residence. (See Sutter. Dep. at 54.) Thereafter, Auto Sports' sent Mr. Sutter further paper work necessary to complete the sale of the Jeep, including the Indiana title, which needed Mr. Sutter's signature, and an application for a Michigan title. (See Def.'s Ex. F.) Before any of the title work was complete, however, Mr. Sutter had the Jeep repaired and recertified for highway use, and placed an ad in Truck Trader Magazine, advertising the Jeep for sale and listing the mileage as "63k." (See Sutter Dep. at 62-63; Def.'s Ex. G.)

On October 8, 2005, after seeing Mr. Sutter's ad in Truck and Trader, Plaintiff went to Mr. Sutter's residence to inquire about purchasing the Jeep. (See Pl.'s Aff. ¶ 12.) After some discussion, Plaintiff and Sutter agreed on a price of $9000. (See id.) The mileage on the Jeep on October 8, 2005, was 63,305 miles, consistent with the advertisement that Plaintiff viewed. (See Def.'s Ex. I; Sutter Dep. at 76.) At this time, Mr. Sutter realized that the title to the Jeep was not in his name: he had not completed the paperwork sent to him by Auto Sports in July. (See Sutter Dep. at 61.) As a result, the title certificate in Mr. Sutter's possession was still the Indiana salvage title.

In an effort to complete the sale Mr. Sutter called Auto Sports and spoke with Justin Misner, who knew Mr. Sutter both from the Jeep transaction and the previous motorcycle sale. (See id. at 63-68.) In order to facilitate Mr. Sutter's transaction with Plaintiff, Mr. Misner offered to process the title work transferring the title first from Auto Sports to Mr. Sutter, and second from Mr. Sutter to Plaintiff. (See id. at 63; Misner Dep. at 59-60.) Mr. Misner did not know this would not be possible until Auto Sports' title clerk, Wendy Polinsky, informed him that Auto Sports could only process the title work for the sale to Mr. Sutter. (See Misner Dep. at 60.) In the meantime, Mr. Misner faxed Mr. Sutter a blank sales agreement and application for Michigan title, and instructed Mr. Sutter to fill in the required information for himself and Plaintiff. (See Sutter Dep. at 63-68.) Mr. Sutter did so and sent the forms back to Auto Sports. (See id. at 63-68.) Assuming that everything would be taken care of, Plaintiff paid Mr. Sutter $9000 and left with the Jeep.

Unbeknownst to either Plaintiff or Mr. Sutter, the title process did not go as planned. The State of Michigan processed Mr. Sutter's application for a Michigan title, which it issued on December 14, 2005, reflecting the mileage of the Jeep on the date Mr. Sutter purchased it in July. (See Pl.'s Ex. 24.) However, because Auto Sports could not process the title work for Plaintiff, his application for title did not get sent to the state. Meanwhile, Plaintiff, who had sent a check to Auto Sports for the title processing, did not have a Michigan title for his Jeep, and made several complaints to the state regarding Auto Sports. (See Pl.'s Ex. 17.) Plaintiff subsequently filed suit in this Court claiming Defendants Auto Sports and Sutter violated the Odometer Act by not showing him the title to the Jeep when he purchased it from Mr. Sutter.

III. LEGAL STANDARD

Summary judgment is proper "if the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any, show that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to a judgment as a matter of law." FED. R. Civ. PRO. 56(c); accord Turner v. City of Taylor, 412 F.3d 629, 637 (6th Cir.2005); Johnson v. Karnes, 398 F.3d 868, 873 (6th Cir.2005). When deciding a motion for summary judgment, the court must view the evidence and draw all reasonable inferences in favor of the non-moving party. See Matsushita Elec. Indus. Co. v. Zenith Radio Corp., 475 U.S. 574, 587, 106 S.Ct. 1348, 89 L.Ed.2d 538 (1986); Harbin-Bey v. Rutter, 420 F.3d 571, 575 (6th Cir.2005). 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." Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 247-48, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986). See Leadbetter v. Gilley, 385 F.3d 683, 689-90 (6th Cir.2004); Weaver v. Shadoan, 340 F.3d 398, 405 (6th Cir.2003). A genuine issue of material fact exists when there is "sufficient evidence favoring the non-moving party for a jury to return a verdict for that party." Anderson, 477 U.S. at 249, 106 S.Ct. 2505 (citations omitted). "If the evidence is merely colorable or is not significantly probative, summary judgment may be granted." Id. at 249-50, 106 S.Ct. 2505 (citations omitted).

IV. ANALYSIS

The Odometer Act ("the Act") provides for a private cause of action where a defendant violates the Act with intent to defraud. See 49 U.S.C. § 32710. Defendant argues that Plaintiff cannot raise a genuine issue of material fact as to Defendant's intent to defraud. Defendant argues that under the Odometer Act ("the Act"), Plaintiff must demonstrate a specific intent to defraud as to the mileage of the vehicle. On the other hand, Plaintiff contends that he must only show a violation of the Act,² coupled with a general fraudulent intent. More specifically, Plaintiff argues that Defendant intended to defraud him as to the vehicle's status as a salvaged vehicle, rather than as to the mileage of the vehicle.

A. The Odometer Act

In passing the Odometer Act, and its predecessor, Congress sought "(1) to prohibit tampering with motor vehicle odometers; and (2) to provide safeguards to protect purchasers in the sale of motor vehicles with altered or reset odometers." 49 U.S.C. § 32701(b). To accomplish these express goals, the Act imposes various requirements on persons transferring motor vehicles. In addition to flat prohibitions on tampering with odometers, a transferor "of a motor vehicle [must] give the transferee a written disclosure (A) of the cumulative mileage registered by the odometer; or (B) that the mileage is unknown if the transferor knows that the mileage registered by the odometer is incorrect." 49 U.S.C. § 32705(a)(1). Transferors are prohibited from making false statements in these disclosures. See 49 U.S.C. § 32705(a)(2). Furthermore, Congress provided for criminal and civil penalties for violations of the Act, including a private civil action. See 49 U.S.C. §§ 32709-32710. Section 32710 states: "A person that violates this chapter or a regulation prescribed or order issued under this chapter, with intent to defraud, is liable for 3 times the actual damages or $1,500, which ever is greater." 49 U.S.C. § 32710(a) (emphasis added).

Based on a Congressional delegation of authority in § 32705, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration ("NHTSA") promulgated regulations which "provide the way in which information is disclosed and retained under" the Act. 49 U.S.C. § 32705. The scope of these regulations is limited to "rules requiring transferors ... of motor vehicles to make written disclosure to transferees ... concerning the odometer mileage and its accuracy as directed by [the Act]." 49 C.F.R. § 580.1. Further, the purpose...