Opinion ID: 2134995
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Negligent Misrepresentation Pleading.

Text: The district court granted the motions to dismiss filed by each of the four defendants. In reviewing these rulings on motions to dismiss we look to the pleadings to determine if they are so deficient that defendants were deprived of notice of the claims made. We have said: Since the advent of notice pleading under Iowa Rule of Civil Procedure 69(a), it is a rare case which will not survive a rule 104(b) motion. As a result, disposition of unmeritorious claims in advance of trial must now ordinarily be accomplished by other pretrial procedures which permit narrowing of the issues and piercing of the bare allegations contained in the petition. American Nat'l Bank v. Sivers, 387 N.W.2d 138, 140 (Iowa 1986). Our court has recognized the tort of negligent misrepresentation. Beeck v. Kapalis, 302 N.W.2d 90, 96-97 (Iowa 1981); Ryan v. Kanne, 170 N.W.2d 395, 402 (Iowa 1969). In both Beeck and Ryan we referred to section 552 of the Restatement (Second) of Torts (1977) which details the necessary proof as follows: One who, in the course of his business, profession or other employment, or in any other transaction in which he has a pecuniary interest, supplies false information for the guidance of others in their business transactions, is subject to liability for pecuniary loss caused to them by their justifiable reliance upon the information, if he fails to exercise reasonable care or competence in obtaining or communicating the information. In defining this tort a differentiation has been made between the person engaged in the business or profession of supplying guidance to others and those commercial transactions where the parties are dealing at arm's length. See Alfred Hill, Damages for Innocent Misrepresentation, 73 Colum.L.Rev. 679, 688 (1973). We also discussed these concepts in Meier v. Alfa-Laval, Inc., 454 N.W.2d 576, 581 (Iowa 1990). In Meier, an action against the manufacturer and dealer of a milking machine system, we held that a negligent misrepresentation action did not lie because there were no facts in the record to show that the dealer was in the business of supplying information contemplated by the Restatement. Our review of the pleadings in the case at bar convinces us that the rationale of Meier applies and that the claim of negligent misrepresentation fails to state a cause of action. Accordingly, the motions to dismiss Ruigh and Miller under this asserted cause of action were properly granted.