Opinion ID: 1120831
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Warranty of Fitness for a Particular Purpose.

Text: NMSA 1978, Section 55-2-315 creates an implied warranty that a good is fit for a particular purpose [w]here the seller at the time of contracting has reason to know any particular purpose for which the goods are required and that the buyer is relying on the seller's skill or judgment to select or furnish suitable goods. DEC contends that Alexander purchased the milking machines for their ordinary use and not for a particular purpose, and thus, no warranty that the machines were fit for a particular purpose could be implied. Official comment (1) to Section 55-2-315 notes: Whether or not this warranty arises in any individual case is basically a question of fact to be determined by the circumstances... . A seller's actual knowledge of the particular purpose or of the buyer's reliance is not required, as long as the circumstances indicate that a seller has reason to know of the buyer's particular purpose and of his reliance on the seller. Id. Comment (2) further indicates: A particular purpose differs from the ordinary purpose for which the goods are used in that it envisages a specific use by the buyer which is peculiar to the nature of his business whereas the ordinary purposes for which goods are used are those envisaged in the concept of merchantability and go to uses which are customarily made of the goods in question. For example, shoes are generally used for the purpose of walking upon ordinary ground, but a seller may know that a particular pair was selected to be used for climbing mountains. A contract may of course include both a warranty of merchantability and one of fitness for a particular purpose. The record bears out DEC's assertion that the machines were made to milk cows, and Alexander used the machines for that purpose. The crux of this issue, however, is whether Alexander intended to use the machines for a particular milking procedure somewhat unique to its operation, and whether DEC had reason to know of such a purpose. In other words, were these shoes for walking or shoes for climbing mountains, and would a reasonable seller be aware of Alexander's particular needs? See Lieb v. Milne, 95 N.M. 716, 625 P.2d 1233 (Ct.App. 1980). Sufficient evidence was presented to warrant presentation of this issue to the jury. Alexander presented evidence that the milking machines were to be used on a double sixteen milk meter system. Thus, the particular purpose for which the machines were to be used was not simply to milk cows, but also to milk them effectively using that particular system. Evidence also was presented that the seller was aware of Alexander's particular needs. That was sufficient to create a jury question on the issue. DEC also contends that Alexander did not rely on the seller's skill or judgment in selecting the milking apparatus. See, e.g., International Paper Co. v. Farrar, 102 N.M. 739, 700 P.2d 642 (1985). It is not dispositive that DEC did not specially manufacture this product for Alexander, or that Alexander may have shopped with different sellers before deciding to buy from DEC and may have developed a certain level of knowledge regarding various systems. Alexander presented evidence that DEC represented to it that the machinery would meet the necessary milking requirements for Alexander's double sixteen system. This was sufficient to present the reliance issue to the jury. Thus, we hold that the evidence presented created issues of fact regarding both whether the machine was purchased for a particular purpose  to milk effectively cows on a double sixteen system  and whether Alexander relied on DEC's judgment and skill in deciding to purchase the system.