Opinion ID: 30583
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Fact Issue of Waiver?

Text: 23 BSI contends that, even if a termination of the Satellite Lease occurred, a material fact issue exists whether NDTC waived any right under the Fee Agreement to claim or rely on such termination. A waiver is an intentional release of a known right or intentional conduct inconsistent with claiming it. Massachusetts Bonding & Ins. Co. v. Orkin Exterminating Co., 416 S.W.2d 396, 401 (Tex.1967); R. Conrad Moore & Assoc., Inc. v. Lerma, 946 S.W.2d 90, 93 (Tex.App.—El Paso 1997, writ denied). The following elements must be met to find waiver: 1) a right must exist at the time of the waiver; 2) the party who is accused of waiver must have constructive or actual knowledge of the right in question; and 3) the party intended to relinquish its right. R. Conrad Moore, 946 S.W.2d at 93. 24 BSI argues that the following conduct is inconsistent with NDTC's claim of termination and presented a fact issue of waiver: 1) NDTC continued to make monthly fee payments to BSI (at least from January 1999 to March 2000); 2) NDTC approved each such payment separately; 3) no one at NDTC notified BSI that the Satellite Lease and therefore the Fee Agreement terminated (at least until April or May 2000); and 4) NDTC continues to use the very same transponder that was subject to the assigned lease after termination of the lease. BSI had requested a specific predicate jury question, i.e., Did NDTC waive any right it had to claim that the [Satellite] lease was terminated effective December 31, 1998? BSI argues that the special interrogatory about the sole purpose of the termination erroneously assumed as a matter of law that there was no waiver by NDTC of its right under the Fee Agreement to claim or rely on termination of the Satellite Lease. 25 We find no unresolved factual dispute about waiver that was taken from the jury. The continued use of Transponder 13 is not material because it is not conduct inconsistent with Defendant's claim of termination. Defendant's continued use of Transponder 13 was undisputably under a new arrangement with the satellite owner, executed near the time of their mutual agreement terminating the Satellite Lease. 6 NDTC made alternative arrangements with PanAmSat for use of Transponder 13 that were entirely consistent with the Termination Contract they entered. 26 As for the other alleged inconsistent behaviors — the continued fee payments by BSI, NDTC's approval of each payment, and the failure to notify BSI of the Satellite Lease termination—none of these entail unresolved fact issues. Only their effect is at issue. The jury was indeed given the question of the effect of this behavior on the rights between BSI and NDTC. 27 The jury was appropriately instructed on the waiver issue as an affirmative defense to NDTC's counterclaim, 7 and not on BSI's main demand. The first of the three elements of waiver requires that a right [] exist at the time of the waiver. R. Conrad Moore, 946 S.W.2d at 93. Here, the alleged waiver was NDTC's conduct in continuing payments under the Fee Agreement and in failing to notify BSI that the termination of the Satellite Lease occurred; the right that existed at the time of that conduct was the contractual right to show that the Fee Agreement terminated earlier by termination of the Satellite Lease. 28 Considering the time frame of the alleged conduct constituting waiver, we conclude that the waiver argument could affect only NDTC's counterclaim for reimbursement of fees paid from December 1998 to March 2000. The fact that NDTC continued to make and approve payments through March 2000 and failed to notify BSI of the Satellite Lease termination is inconsistent with NDTC's claim that such fees were not due because a termination occurred earlier than April 2000. See, e.g., West Texas State Bank v. Tri-Service Drilling Co., 339 S.W.2d 249, 253 (Tex.App.-Eastland 1960, writ ref'd n.r.e. ) (where circumstances of payment indicate intention on the part of payor to waive his rights, payment is voluntary and payor cannot recover money so paid, even if he had no obligation to make the payment). In denying NDTC any reimbursement for fee payments made from December 1998 to March 2000, the jury had to find either that NDTC did waive its right to the claim by continuing the payments or that NDTC's conduct prevented it from obtaining a refund. 29 BSI recognized the appropriateness of arguing waiver as a defense to the countersuit, both to the court in its Rule 50 motion for judgment as matter of law, as well as to the jury in closing arguments. 8 In that context and for that period of continuing payments, a waiver argument was entirely appropriate. See Hruska v. First State Bank of Deanville, 747 S.W.2d 783, 785 (Tex.1988) (recognizing waiver under Texas law as defensive in nature); West Texas State Bank, 339 S.W.2d at 253 (discussing waiver of right to claim reimbursement by one who voluntarily makes payments). 30 BSI's main demand for breach of contract, however, affects a later period, from the cessation of payments in April 2000 continuing through the longest possible term of the Fee Agreement, until December 2006. There is no question of the effect of NDTC's conduct after April 2000, because NDTC's payments did not continue after that date, and the lack of notice was corrected by then as well. 9 In short, from that date forward, there was no evidence of conduct inconsistent with NDTC's claim that the contract terminated. 31 NDTC's defense to BSI's main demand was that the Fee Agreement terminated by the termination of the Satellite Lease. BSI was fully aware that under the Fee Agreement, NDTC's obligation to continue monthly payments would cease upon termination of the Satellite Lease. BSI has demonstrated no factual or legal basis for waiver to apply to NDTC's defense to its main demand. 10 The district court did not err in refusing an additional interrogatory on waiver. 32