H onor abl e Paul R . M i chel , C hi ef J udge, U ni t ed St at es C our tof A ppeal s forthe * Feder al C i r cui t , s i t t i ng bydes i gnat i on. NOT P RE CE DE NT I AL UN I TED STATES CO UR T OF A PP EALS F O R T H E T H IR D C IR C U IT
N o. 08- 2647 S ENI OR S ET TL EM ENT S , LL C, A ppel l ant
v. GR OW TH TR UST FUN D; TRU STEE S OF THE STEI NM ETZ

GR OWTH T RU S T F UND; AB RA HA M W EI NG AR TEN; FAY W EI NG AR TEN; M I CH AEL STEI NM ETZ; LEAH CO HN , i n d i v i d u a l l ya n d j o i n t l y ; BERN AT STEI NM ETZ, A ppel l ees

A p p ea l from the U n it ed S tat es D istri ct C o u rt fort he D i s t r i ctof N ew J er s ey ( D . C . C i vi l A ct i on N o. 1- 05- cv- 00777) D istric t Ju d g e : H o n o ra b le J e ro m e B . S im a n d le Subm i t t ed U nderT hi r d C i r cui tL A R 34. 1( a)

M ar ch 8, 2010
B efor e: A M B R O , SM I T H and M I C H E L , C i r cui tJ udges * ( Fi l ed A pr i l 8, 2010)T h e D istri ct C o u rtalso d en ied S en ior S ett lem en ts’ m o ti o n fo r sum m ary 1 ju d g m e n t. 2 OP I NI ON A M B R O , C i r cui tJ udge T h is a p p e a l in v o lv e s a c o n tra c t d isp u te. S e n io r S e ttl e m e n ts, L L C a lleg e s th a t it
e n ter e d in to v a lid c o n tra c ts w ith th e G ro w th T ru st F u n d to p u rc h a se th e b e n e f icia l rig h ts t o t he pr ocee ds of var i ous l i fe i ns ur ance pol i ci es . T he D i s t r i ctC our tgr ant ed the mot i on o f th e a p p ell ee s (w h o inclu d e the G row th T rust F u n d an d it s T rustee s) fo r sum m ary j udgm ent , concl udi ng t hatt he part i es neveragr eed t o s uch tr ans act i ons . T he D i s t r i ct C our tl at erdeni ed Seni orSet t l ement s ’ m ot i on forr econs i der at i on. 1 O n appea l , Seni orSet t l ement s ar gues thatthe part i es ent er ed i nt o val i d and enfor cea bl e contr act s and thatt he Trus t ees at t empt ed t o r es ci nd thes e contr act s i n bad fai t h. I n t he al t ernat i ve, t heyar gue thatther e ar e genui ne i s s ues of m at er i al fac tthat p r e c l u d e s u mma r yj u d g me n t . W e d i s a g r e e , a n d th e r e f o r e a f f i r m. I. Seni orSet t l ement s i s a “l i fe s et t l ement ” company . I n t hi s capa ci t y , i ti s “i n t he bus i nes s of pur chas i ng l i fe i ns ur ance pol i ci es fr om the ow ner s of s uch pol i ci es . ” A pp. 1 8 2 . A s S e n io r S e ttl e m e n ts e x p lain s, “ E n ter in g in to a L if e In su ra n c e P o licya n d S a le A gr eementw i t h Seni orSet t l ement s . . . enabl es y ou t o s el l the l i fe i ns ur ance pol i cyw hi ch y ou ow n . . . forcas h ata di s countfr om i t s fac e val ue. ” I d. D ur i ng the r emai nderof theA l t hough bot h par t i es focus on t hi s fac t , w e onl ynot e i ti n pas s i ng. “A part y , w ho 2 has or i gi nal l yi ns i s t ed thatbot h par t i es s i gn a documentbefor e a mutual l ybi ndi ng agr eementm aycome i nt o exi s t ence , m aydi s pens e w i t h t hatr equi r ement . ” R oadw ay E xpr es s , I nc. v. G en. Team s t ers , C hauf f eurs & H el pers U ni on, Local249 , 330 F. 2d 859, 863- 64 ( 3d C i r . 1964) . I n t hi s cas e, w e nee d notr eac h t he i s s ue of w hetherSeni or 3 or i gi nal pol i cyow ner ’ s l i fe, Seni orSet t l ement s ( ori t s des i gnee) pay s the pr emi um s on t he pol i cy . O nce the i ni t i al ow nerpas s es aw ay , Seni orSet t l ement s col l ect s the pr ocee ds f r o m t h e i n s u r a n c e p o l i c y. T h e p o li cies a t i ssu e in th is ap p ea l w ere init ial lyo w n ed b yB ern at S tei n m etz. I n Ja n u a ry1 9 9 2 , S tein m e tz c re a ted th e G ro w th T ru st F u n d a n d p lac e d h is p o licie s in th is t rus t . I n J une 2004, Seni orSet t l ement s appr oache d t he Trus taboutpur chas i ng the p ro c e e d s f

ro m th e se p o licie s. A t issu e o n a p p e a l is w h e th e r th e p a rties e n ter e d in to v a lid and enfo rceabl e con t ract s. E ach of Seni orSet t l ement s ’ purpor t ed off er s i ncl uded the fol l ow i ng “Per form ance ” pr ovi s i on:

T hi s A gr eementhas been e xecut ed fi r s tbythe Pur chas er [Seni orSet t l ement s ] as an off ert o pur chas e the Pol i cy her eunder , w hi ch off

ers hal l be open f

oracc ept ance bySel l er unt i l 5: 00 p. m . on 7/ 23/ 04, atw hi ch t i m e the off ers hal l be d e e m e d to b e w ith d ra w n u n les s P u rc h a se r h a s re c e iv e d a f u lly e x e c u te d c o u n te rp a rt to th is A g re e m e n t f ro m S e lle r. T

im e is of the es s ence i n this A gr eem ent . I d. at 41 3 (em p h asis ad d ed ). T h e p u rpo rt ed o ff ers f u rth er p rov ided that “[ n ]o
a m e n d m e n t, m o d if

ica tio n , term in a tio n , o r w a iv e r o f a n yp ro v isio n o f

th is A g re e m e n t sh a ll be ef fec t i ve unl es s t he s ame sha l l be i n w r i t i ng and s i gned bySel l erand Pur chas er . ” I d. Seni orSet t l ement s i t s el f neve rs i gned the purpor t ed off er s . Fur t herm or e, the Trus t ees 2Set t l ement s “di s pens ed” w i t h t he r equi r ementthatthe agr eement s be s i gned.

I ndeed, t he D i s t r i ctC our tcorr ect l ynot es , “Ther e i s no di s put e thatthe Trus t ees 3 di d notagr ee t o t he pur chas e of the pol i ci es w i t hi n t he t i m e l i m i ti n t he purpor t ed off er . ” A pp. 4- 5. T he di s put e, i ns t ead, i s overw hetherSeni orSet t l ement s ei t herw ai ved the d ea d li n e o r ac ce p ted th e T rustee s’ co u n terof fe r. T hi s w as perm i t t ed bec aus e the Trus t ees had s i gned cha nge- of- benef i ci aryand 4 ow ner s hi p form s i n Sept emberas a condi t i on of ent er i ng i nt o i t s agr eement s w i t h Seni or Set t l ement s . T hes e ac t i ons w er e atthe di r ectpr om pt i ng of the r el evanti ns ur ance com pan y(A m eri can G eneral ), no tS eniorS et t l em ents . 4 di d notat t empt t o acc eptt hem unt i l A ugus t10, 2004— overtw o w eeks aft erthei rs t at ed deadl i ne. R egar dl es s , i n Sept ember , the pol i ci es ’ des i gnat i on of ow ner s hi p w as change d

3 to S e n io r S e ttl e m e n ts. A t th a t ti m e , S e n io r S e ttl e m e n ts d id n o t n o tifyth e T ru ste e s o f th is 4 change i n ow ner s hi p orm ake a nypaym ent s t o t hem. A di s put e then ar os e betw een the p a rt ie s o v e r w h e th e r t h e yh a d e n te re d in to v a lid a n d e n f o rc e a b le c o n tr a c ts . D ue t o t he “Per form ance ” pr ovi s i on of the purpor t ed off er s , the appe l l ees expec t ed t o r ece i ve s i gned copi es of the fi nal agr eement s fr om Seni orSet t l ement s befor e the tra n sa c tio n w a s f

in a lize d . N o n e w a s e v e r se n t. O n O c to b e r 2 1 , 2 0 0 4 , B e rn a t S tein m e tz
w r ot e a l et t ert o Seni orSet t l ement s , di r ect i ng i tnott o pr ocee d unt i l he r ece i ved s i gned copi es of the agr eement s . H ow ever , St ei nm et z w as nota part yt o t he contr act s and had
n o a u th o ri ty to s p e a k f

o r t h e T ru s t. Seni orSet t l ement s r es ponded t o St ei nm et z thats ame dayw i t h t w o l ett er s . I n the f irst le tter, it ex p lain e d th a t “[ i]n o rd e r . . . to c o m p lyw ith [ S tein m e tz’ s] r e q u e st, [ it] need[ ed] [hi s ] s i gnatur e not ar i zed. ” I d. at249. T heyfur t hernot ed that“ther e appe ar [ed]S e n io r S e ttle m e n ts d id n o t s p e c if yth e n a tu re o f

th is “ d is c re p a n c y .” 5 I n i t s hear i ng befor e the D i s t r i ctC our t , Seni orSet t l ement s ’ couns el admi t t ed as 6 m u c h . T h e D istric t C o u rt a sk e d , “D id th e T ru ste e s k n o w a n ytim e b e f o re O c to b e r 2 8 th t hatSeni orSet t l ement s had t aken moneyoutof [the] pol i ci es ?” A pp. 757. C ouns el re s p o n d e d , “ T h e yw o u ld n o t h a v e k n o w n it, n o r w o u ld th e yh a v e a n yre a s o n to k n o w it. I don’ tbel i eve ther e i s anyevi dence t hattheyknew that . ” I d. at757- 58. 5 t o be a di s cr epanc yw i t h t he agr eement s y ou al r eadys i gned w i t h us . ” I d. I n t he s econd 5 l et t er , Seni orSet t l ement s r eas s ur ed St ei nm et z thattheyw er e “w or ki ng di l i gent l yi n or der t o compl et e thi s t r ans act i on i n a t i m el yand ef fi ci entm anner . ” I

d. at25 4. T heyal so apol ogi zed that“thi s par t i cul art r ans act i on ha[d] t aken c ons i der abl yl onger ” than w as “typi cal , ” and thanked St ei nm et z forhi s “pat i ence and per s ever ance . ” I d. T he l ett er concl uded, “I can a s s ur e y ou t hatw e ar e doi ng everyt hi ng pos s i bl e t o expedi t e the t r ans act i on[, ] and w e l ook forw ar d t o a s ucce s s ful concl us i on i n t he verynearfutur e. ” I d. O n O ct ober22, 2004, Fay e W ei ngar t en ( a Trus t ee) s enta l et t ert o Seni or Set t l ement s , agai n i ns t ruct i ng i tnott o pr ocee d w i t h t he tr ans act i on unt i l the Trus t ees re c e iv e d c o p ies o f

th e sig n e d a g re e m e n ts. S e n io r S e ttl e m e n ts d id n o t re sp o n d to th is l et t er . O n O ct ober28, 2004, M i chae l St ei nm et z ( al s o a Trus t ee) faxe d and mai l ed a
w i t hdr aw al l et t ert o Seni orSet t l ement s , not i ng that“the Trus t ees and the I ns ur ed B ernat S t ei nm et z herebyw i t hd raw al l of the S al e O ffers for al l of the S t ei nm et z po l i ci es, eff ect i ve i m m edi at el y . ” I

d. at265. B ythen, unbeknow ns tt o t he Trus t ees , Seni or S et t l em ents had al readyw i t hd raw n m on eyfrom the p oli ci es. 6 I n t he end, Seni orSet t l ement s at t empt ed t o t enderpaym entt o t he Trus t ees on N o v e m b e r 1 , 2 0 0 4 . T h e T ru ste e s re tu rn e d th e c h e c k s a n d in f o rm e d S e n io r S e ttl e m e n tsO n appea l , nei t herpar t ydi s put es thatN ew J er s eyl aw governs thi s di s put e. 7 6 t hatanyfutur e che cks w oul d be s i m i l ar l yr ej ect ed. Fol l ow i ng a vol l eyof l et t er s , Seni or Set t l ement s br oughtt he curr entact i on. W hi l e Seni orSet t l ement s i ni t i al l yfi l ed an a ct i on fordecl ar at oryj udgm enti n t he Super i orC our tof N ew J er s ey , t he appe l l ees r emoved t he ca s e t o fede r al cour t . T he par t i es eventual l yfi l ed cr os s - m ot i ons fors um m aryj udgm ent . T he D i s t r i ctC our tgr ant ed t he appe l l ees ’ m ot i on. T he C our tconcl uded, [ I]f th e N e w Je rse yS u p re m e C o u rt w e re f a c e d w ith th e iss u e th a t f a c e s th is C o u rt to d a y , itw o u ld f

in d th a t th e re w a s n o c o n tra c t w h e n D e f e n d a n ts at t empt ed t o acc eptan expi r ed off erand ( 1) Pl ai nt i ffs , al t hough begi nni ng t o per form , di d notm ake thei rconductknow n t o D efe ndant s ; ( 2) D ef en d an ts ha d n o rea so n , b yall co u n ts, to k n o w that P lai n ti ff s w ere per form i ng; and ( 3) D efe ndant s r ece i ved no bene fi tof Pl ai nt i ffs ’ part i al p erf o rm an ce p ri o r t o term inating their co u n terof fe r. I d. at16- 17. Seni orSet t l ement s fi l ed a t i m el ym ot i on forr econs i der at i on, w hi ch the D istric t C o u rt d e n ied . S e n io r S e ttl e m e n ts th e n f iled th is tim e lya p p e a l. II. T he D i s t r i ctC our thad di ver s i t yj ur i s di ct i on under28 U . S. C . § 1332. W e have 7 j ur i s di ct i on under28 U . S. C . § 1291. W e e x e rc is e p le n a ry re v ie w o v e r a n o rd e r g ra n tin g s u m m a ry ju d g m e n t. See C ur l ey v . K l em , 298 F. 3d 271, 276- 77 ( 3d C i r . 2002) . I n det erm i ni ng w hetheran or der fors um m aryj udgm entw as ent er ed corr ect l y , w e appl ythe s ame t es tus ed bythe D i s tr i ct C o u rt. S u m m a ryju d g m e n t is a p p ro p ria te w h e n , d ra w in g a ll rea so n a b le in f e re n c e s in favorof the nonmovi ng par t y , “ther e i s no genui ne i s s ue as t o anym at er i al fac tand that“G ener al l y , t he deni al of a mot i on forr econs i der at i on i s r evi ew ed foran abus e of 8 di s cr et i on. ” N

. R i verI ns . C o. v. C

IG N A R ei ns ur ance Co. , 5 2 F . 3 d 1 1 9 4 , 1 2 0 3 (3d C ir . 1995) . “W her e a di s t r i ctcour t ’ s deni al of a mot i on t o r econs i deri s bas ed upon the in terp re tatio n o f

leg a l p re c e p ts, h o w e v e r, o u r re v iew o f th e lo w e r c o u rt’s d e c isio n is pl enary . ” I

d. “[T] o t he ext entt hatt he di s t r i ctcour t ’ s or derw as bas ed on a f actual concl us i on, w e r evi ew undera ‘ cl ear l yerr oneous ’ s t andar d. ” I d. 7 the m o v an t i s en ti tl ed to jud g m en t as a m att er o f law . ” F ed . R . C iv. P. 56 (c). 8 III . U nderN ew J er s eyl aw , “[a ] contr actar i s es fr om offe rand ac cept ance , and mustbe
s uffi ci ent l ydefi ni t e ‘ t hatt he per form ance t o be r ender ed byeac h par t ycan be as cert ai ned
w i t h r eas onabl e ce r t ai nt y . ’ ” W ei cher tC o. R eal t ors v. Ryan , 60 8 A . 2d 28 0, 28 4 (N . J. 1 9 9 2 ) ( q u o tin gB o ro u g h o f W . C a ldw e ll v. B o ro u g h o f C a ldw e ll , 13 8 A . 2d 40 2, 41 0 (N . J. 1958) ) . H ow ever , “a c ont r actdoes notcome i nt o bei ng unl es s ther e [i s ] a mani fes t at i on of m utual as s entbyt he part i es t o t he s ame t erm s . ” Johns on & J ohns on v. C har m l ey D r ug C o. , 9 5 A .2 d 3 9 1 , 3 9 7 (N .J. 1 9 5 3 ). “[ W ]h ile th e m a n if e sta tio n o f

m u tu a l as se n t is u su a lly had byan off

erand an a cce pt ance ei t heri n w or ds orbyconduct , i ti s el ement arythat t her e ca n be no oper at i ve ac cept ance byact s orconductunl es s the off er ee’ s as s entt o t he
o f f e ra c c o r d i n g t o i t s t e r m s i s t h e r e b y u n e q u i v o c a l l y s h o wn . ” I

d. (em p h asis ad d ed ). As
s uch, al t hough “[c ] onductm ayt ake the pl ace of w r i t t en ors poken w or ds i n t he form at i on of contr act s [, ] s i l ence does notor di nar i l ys erve as an ac cept ance of an of fer . ” Id
. I n the end, “[t ] her e . . . needs [t o] be an a gr eement

— a ‘ m eet i ng of the mi nds ’ on t he s ubj ect
m at t er. . . , ort her e i s no l egal l yenfor cea bl e obl i gat i on. ” I d. Fort he fol l ow i ng r eas ons , w e hol d t hatther e w as no agr eementbetw een Seni orN e w J e rs e yc o u rt s h a v e o f te n n o te d th e im p o rt a n c e o f s u c h la n g u a g e . See, e. g. , 9 P a ra d iso v . M

a ze jy , 69 A . 2d 15, 17 ( N . J . 1949) ( “‘ [I ] f i ti s s t i pul at ed thatt i m e i s of the esse n ce , . . . p rom p t perf o rm an ce is essen ti al . . . . ’”) ( quot i ng R eade v
. McKenna , 1 3 4 A. 3 7 1 , 3 7 2 (N .J. C h . 1 9 2 6 )); Mar i oni v. 94 B r oadw ay, I nc. , 8 6 6 A . 2 d 2 0 8 , 2 1 7 (N . J. S u p er. C t . A pp. D i v. 2005) ( “[I ] f the contr acti t s el f pr ovi des a cl earunder s t andi ng thatt i m e i s of the e ssen ce , then itis w ell -sett led th at ‘pro m p t perf o rm an ce is essen ti al . . . . ’”) ( quot i ng P arad iso , 6 9 A .2 d a t 1 7 ); Ti edem ann v. C oz i ne , 6 8 8 A .2 d 1 0 5 6 , 1 0 5 8 (N .J. S u p e r. C t. A pp. D i v. 1997) ( “a f

i ndi ng t hatt i m e w as of the es s ence ” r equi r ed “a w r i t i ng s t at i ng t hat t i m e w as of the es s ence ” and a det erm i nat i on “thatthe t i m e al l ow ed be r eas onabl e and sp ec ifi c” ). 8 S e t t l e me n t s a n d t h e Tru s ti n t h i s c a s e . W e th e r e f o r e a f f i r m. I V. T he keycontr actt erm ati s s ue her e i s the expl i ci tdeadl i ne i ncl uded bySeni or Se t t l e me n t s u n d e re a c h o f t h e p u rp o r t e d a g r e e me n t s ’ “ Pe r f o r ma n c e ” p r o v i s i o n . To
re p e a t, th is p a ss a g e p ro v id e d th a t th e “ o f f e r sh a ll b e o p e n f

o r a c c e p tan c e b yS e ller u n til 5: 00 p. m . on 7/ 23/ 04. ” A pp. 413. T he pr ovi s i on l at eremphasi zed that“[t ] i m e i s of the
e s s e n c e in th is A g re e m e n t.” I d. W e hol d t hat , due t o t hi s expl i ci tdeadl i ne, the off erw as 9 notopen w hen the Trus t ees at t empt ed t o acc epti ton A ugus t10, 2004.

“ Ju st a s th e o f

f e ro r is a t li b e rtyto m a k e n o o f f e r a t all, itis a lso a t li b e rtyto d icta te
w hat evert erm s i ts ees fi ti f i tchoos es t o m ake a n offe r . ” 1 W ill isto n o n C o n tra c ts § 5 :5 ( 4t h ed. 2009) . U nderN ew J er s eyl aw , “[t ] her e i s no ques t i on thatan off er ee mustacc ept an off erw i t hi n t he t i m e s peci fi ed i n t he off er. . . . ” Stat e v . Er ns t& Y ou ng, LLP , 902 A .2 d 3 3 8 , 3 4 5 (N .J. S u p e r. C t. A p p . D iv . 2 0 0 6 ); s ee al s o R es t at ement( Second) of C ont r act s § 41 cmt . a ( 1981) ( “J us tas the off erm aypr es cr i be the i dent i t yof the off er ee (§ 2 9 ) o r t h e f

o rm o f a c c e p ta n c e (§ 3 0 ), s o it m a yp re s c ri b e a tim e lim it f o r a c c e p ta n c e .9

Such a l i m i t at i on m us tbe compl i ed w i t h. ”) . A bs enta w ai verof the dea dl i ne bythe offe r or , “[a ] n offe r ee’ s pow erof ac cept ance i s t erm i nat ed atthe t i m e s peci fi ed i n t he offe r . ” R es t at ement( Second) of C ont r act s § 41( 1) ( 1981) . Seni orSet t l ement s conce des
a s m u c h o n a p p e a l. See A ppel l ant ’ s B r . 30 ( “Seni orSet t l ement s r ecogni zes the gene r al
ru le— re lied u p o n b yth e D istric t C o u rt— th a t an o f f e re e ’s p o w e r o f

a c c e p tan c e is u su a lly ter m in a ted b yth e tem p o ra l ex p ira tio n o f th e o f f e r.”) . S in c e th e p u tativ e a g re e m e n ts s t at ed that“[t ] i m e i s of the es s ence ” and the Trus t ees fai l ed t o exec ut e the agr eement s by t he des i gnat ed dea dl i ne, no contr actw as form ed on A ugus t10, 2004. A l t hough Seni or Set t l ement s i s corr ecti n ar gui ng t hatan off er orm ayw ai ve an e xpl i ci tdeadl i ne by
as s ent i ng t o l at e ac cept ance , s uch a w ai verm us thave be en comm uni cat ed t o t he Trus t ees ( t h r o u g h e i t h e rwo r d o rd e e d ) f o rt h e wa i v e rt o b i n d th e m. S eniorS et t l em ents ci t es Synnex C or p. v. A D T Secur i t

y Ser vi ces , I

nc. , 928 A . 2d 37 (N . J. S up er. C t . A pp . D i v. 20 07 ), for the argu m ent that i tw ai ved the ag reem ents ’ d e a d lin e s b ya ss e n tin g to late a c c e p tan c e . W e c o n c lu d e th a t Synnex is n o t o n p o in t. T h e re , a n a la rm c o m p a n ya g re e d to in s ta ll a n a la rm s y s te m a t a b u s in e s s ’s w a re h o u s e . A ft ert he s y s t em w as i ns t al l ed, t her e w as a bur gl ary . T he bus i nes s br oughts ui t . T he al arm companyar gued thati tw as notl i abl e bec aus e the contr actw as nevers i gned by any one i n i t s hom e off

i ce, as pert he contr act ’ s expl i ci tt erm s . T he C our tconcl uded that t her e w as s t i l l a val i d and enf or cea bl e contr actbetw een the part i es . A l t hough the part i es di d notabi de byt he contr act ’ s expl i ci tper form ance pr ovi s i on, the al arm companyw ai ved t hi s r equi r ementbyi ns t al l i ng t he al arm s y s t em and acce pt i ng paym entfori t s goods andS e n io r S e ttl e m e n ts a rg u e s th a t it s O c to b e r 2 1 , 2 0 0 4 , letter to B e rn a t S tein m e tz 10 w as s uch a di r ectcomm uni cat i on. W e di s agr ee. Fi r s t , thi s ar gum enti gnor es thatSeni or Set t l ement s ’ l et t erfol l ow ed St ei nm et z’ s ear l i eri ns t ruct i on “not[t o] pr ocee d w i t h any L i fe Sett l ementunt i l I r ece i ve a c opyof m ycontr act . ” A pp. 247. T hi s i ns t ruct i on w as re in f o rc e d a d a yla te r i n a le tte r f ro m F a y e W e in g a rt e n (o n e o f th e T ru s te e s ). N evert hel es s , no copi es of the agr eement s w er e eve rs entt o St ei nm et z ort o anyof the T ru ste e s. S e c o n d , S e n io r S e ttl e m e n ts’ a rg u m e n t als o ig n o re s th a t it s le tter w a s d ire c ted to B ernatSt ei nm et z ( w ho Seni orSet t l ement s i t s el f not es “w as nota part yt o t he A gr eement s , ” A ppel l ant ’ s B r . 11) r atherthan t o t he Trus t ees . G i ven thi s , Seni or S e ttl e m e n ts c a n n o t b o th re lyo n its c o m m u n ica tio n w ith S tein m e tz to su p p o rt th e v a lid ity of thei rcontr actw i t h t he Trus t ees w hi l e al s o i gnor i ng St ei nm et z’ s i ns t ruct i ons “not[t o] p ro c e e d .” 10 serv ices. In o ther w o rds, pe rfo rm an ce co n sti tuted w aive r. T h e C o u rtrea so n ed , “A D T ’s
s hi pm entand i ns t al l at i on of the s ecur i t ys y s t em atthe Synnex w ar ehous e and s ubs equent
m oni t or i ng cons t i tut ed an une qui vocal acc ept ance of the contr act . ” I d. at 43 . T h e C o u rt
a d d e d , “S yn n e x ’s r e c e ip t an d p a ym e n t f o r th e se g o o d s a n d se rv ice s re f lec ted its
u n d e r s t a n d i n g t h a ti th a d c o n t r a c t e d wi t h ADT i n a c c o r d a n c e wi t h th e t e r ms o f th e ADT form contr act . ” I

d. A l t hough t her e ar e s i m i l ar i t i es betw een Synnex an d the c u rren t app ea l, there are al so keydiffer ences. In this case, on ce t he T rust ees si gn ed an d returned the agreem ents , t heyw er e gr eet ed— notw i t h an i ns t al l ed al arm s y s t em or s om e otherunequi vocal s i gn of Seni orSet t l ement s ’ as s ent

— butw i th s i l ence . I ndeed, the r ecor d l acks anyconcl us i ve e v id e n c e th a t S e n io r S e ttl e m e n ts a ttem p ted to c o m m u n ica te d ire c tlyto th e T ru ste e s its
u n eq u ivo ca l con sen t t o lat e a cc ep tanc e— at l ea st prior t o rev o ca ti o n . F u rth erm o re, th ere 10
w a s n o d ire c t n e g o tiatio n b e tw e e n th e p a rties to e x ten d th e o f f e r p e rio d a n d n o a ttem p t to t enderpaym entdur i ng t hi s per i od. W hi l e i ti s true thatSeni orSet t l ement s w i t hdr ewSeni orSet t l ement s r el i es on a l et t erfr om one of the i ns ur ance compani es 11 ( A m er i can G ener al ) t o t he Trus t ees on Sept ember , 13, 2004, t o ar gue thatSeni or S e ttl e m e n ts’ c o n d u c t cr e a ted a v a lid a n d e n f o rc e a b le c o n tra c t b e tw e e n th e p a rties . T h is let ter pe rt aine d to p rob lem s w ith the C h an g e o f O w n ersh ip an d C h an g e o f B en ef ici ary form s t hatt he Trus t ees had i ni t i al l yexec ut ed. A m er i can G ener al not ed thatthe Trus t ees 11 m oneyfr om t he pol i ci es , t he Trus t ees w er e unaw ar e of thi s act i vi t y— and Seni or Set t l ement s ’ couns el conce ded as m uch bef or e the D i s t r i ctC our t . I n t he end, no contr act
w a s f o rm e d b e tw e e n th e p a rt ie s o n A u g u s t 1 0 , 2 0 0 4 . A t m o st, w h e n th e T ru ste e s re tu rn e d th e sig n e d d o c u m e n ts to S e n io r S e ttl e m e n ts
a f t e rt h e e x p l i c i td e a d l i n e , t h e s e s i g n e d d o c u me n t s c o n s t i tu t e d a c o u n t e r o f f e r . “ An expr es s i on of as s entt hatm odi fi es t he s ubs t ance of the t ender , w hi l e i tm aybe oper at i ve as a count er - offe r , i s y etnotan ac cept ance and does notcons um m at e a c ont r act . ” Johns on & J

ohns on , 9 5 A .2 d a t 3 9 7 . In th is c a se , the T ru ste e s’ “ e x p re ss io n o f a ss e n t” al t er ed the s al e’ s expl i ci tdeadl i ne— J ul y23, 2004— a dea dl i ne w hos e i m por t ance w as r ei nfor ced byl anguage i n t he i ni t i al pr opos ed agr eement s thatemphasi zed that“t i m e i s of t he es s ence . ” B yr etur ni ng t he pr opos ed agr eement s t o Seni orSet t l ement s aft erthe deadl i ne, t he Trus t ees al t er ed an e s s ent i al contr actt erm
— t he dea dl i ne i t s el f. A s not ed t hi s cons t i tut ed atm os ta count er offe r , one thatSeni orSet t l ement s neveracc ept ed ei ther d ir e c tly th ro u g h c o m m u n ic a tio n o r i n d ir e c tly th ro u g h its c o n d u c t. Seni orSet t l ement s nevers i gned and r eturned the pr opos ed agr eement s t o t he T rus t ees . Fur t herm or e, i tneverdi r ect l ycomm uni cat ed i t s acc ept ance t o t he Trus t ees nor di d i tcomm uni cat e i t s as s entt hr ough i t s conductunt i l i tat t empt ed t o t enderpaym enton N o v e m b e r 1 , 2 0 0 4 . B yth e n , h o w e v e r, th e T ru ste e s h a d a lre a d yre v o k e d th e ir 11had pr evi ous l y“s i gned butnotdat ed” a r el at ed form . A pp. 806. T he l ett eral s o expl ai ned

t hatA m er i can G ener al w oul d be “una bl e t o pr oces s ” anychange i n ow ner s hi p unt i l the “new ow ner. . . s i gn[ed] and dat e[d] the C hange of B enef i ci aryform . ” I

d. On Sept ember21, 2004, t he Trus t ees agai n s i gned and r eturned the r equi r ed form s . A tthe s ame t i m e, t heyr ece i ved no r el at ed comm uni cat i ons fr om Seni orSet t l ement s . I n t he end, w e agr ee w i t h t he D i s t r i ctC our tt hat , byr eturni ng thes e form s t o A m er i can G ener al , t he T ru ste e s h a d sim p ly“ e x e c u ted a ll th e n e c e ss a ryf o rm s to f a c ili tate th e p u rc h a se o f th e ir pol i ci es bySeni orSet t l ement s . . . , butthatthos e exe cut i ons comm uni cat ed a count er offe rt o Seni orSet t l ement s t hati tnevereff ect i vel yacc ept ed bec aus e i tdi d not i nform D efe ndant s , byw or ds ordeeds , of i t s acc ept ance . ” I d. at38. T he Trus t ees ’ count er offe rw as r evoked byM i chae l St ei nm et z i n hi s O ct ober28, 12 20 04 , l et t er— day s befo re Senior Set t l em ents at t em pted t o tender paym ent t o the T rust ees. 12 co u n terof

fe r. 12 * * * * * F o r th e se re a so n s, w e a f f irm th e ju d g m e n t o f

th e D istric t C o u rt.