Opinion ID: 195970
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Financial Inability to Remediate

Text: 20 Mobil likewise challenges the district court ruling that Four Corners lacked the financial ability to remediate the soil contamination. It contends that the ruling was infected by legal error, in that the court wrongly regarded Four Corners' financial inability to pay for out-of-state disposal, the costlier but more expeditious method of remediation, as a circumstance beyond the franchisee's reasonable control. If this were true, Mobil argues, any franchisee who came upon hard times and could not afford to pay Mobil for its oil purchases would be exempt from unilateral termination. See, e.g., California Petroleum Distribs. v. Chevron U.S.A., 589 F.Supp. 282, 288 (E.D.N.Y.1984); Cantrell v. Exxon Co., U.S.A., 574 F.Supp. 313, 317 (M.D.Tenn.1983). Even if we were to agree with the reasoning of the two decisions cited by Mobil, however, the district court simply did not find that Four Corners' choice of a less expeditious remediation program was beyond its reasonable control because Four Corners could not afford more expeditious measures. Indeed, Four Corners itself adduced evidence that its then owner, Richard Tenczar, could have obtained financing for out-of-state disposal if necessary. 21 Mobil's contention is a thinly veiled attempt to frame the present clear error challenge, see Roberts, 740 F.2d at 608, as an issue of law subject to de novo review. See Cumpiano v. Banco Santander Puerto Rico, 902 F.2d 148, 154 (1st Cir.1990) (The 'clearly erroneous' rule cannot be evaded by the simple expedient of creative relabelling.... by dressing factual disputes in 'legal' costumery.). The central inquiry--that of reasonableness--must be undertaken in light of all the circumstances. In that vein, we cannot ignore the subsidiary finding by the district court that Mobil repeatedly ignored Four Corners' pleas for guidance and assistance on how best to remediate service-station soil contamination. See Four Corners I, slip op. at 14 (Mobil offered no assistance that was refused by Four Corners which would evidence a lack of desire on the part of Four Corners to remedy the problem as expeditiously as possible.); cf., e.g., Malone v. Crown Cent. Petroleum Corp., 474 F.Supp. 306, 311 (D.Md.1979) (upholding franchise termination where franchisee deliberately failed to heed franchisor's warnings or accept its good faith advice about more profitable marketing strategies). Four Corners was left entirely to its own devices, in the awkward position of having to determine the most cost-effective remediation method, which involved balancing projected future service-station revenue losses occasioned by a more prolonged closure, against the unconfirmable--but unquestionably higher--immediate costs of a more expeditious remediation. In these circumstances, the district court reasonably could find that Four Corners acted in good faith, and that Mobil's reticence to assist was prompted by its desire to rid itself of the franchisee requesting its assistance. As there was no clear error, the liability judgment against Mobil must stand.