Court Opinion

ID: 9795222
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-31 03:23:00.46739+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T08:28:13.361807
License: Public Domain

ALARID, Judge (specially concurring). {45} I wholeheartedly concur in the result reached by Judge Bustamante’s opinion. I concur in the reasoning set out in Parts A and D of Judge Bustamante’s opinion. I disagree with Parts B and C because I do not believe that this case involves a substituted contract. {46} The critical error made by the trial court was its conclusion that the December 21, 1995, notice of termination had no effect, and therefore, the 1966 and 1968 contracts “remain valid and controlling.” As Judge Bustamante points out, this legal conclusion is wrong. The December 21, 1995, notice was effective to terminate the 1966 and 1968 contracts within thirty and fifteen days, respectively. {47} The concept of a substitute contract is important when there is a question of whether there was consideration to support the discharge of a duty owed under an existing contract. E. Allan Farnsworth, Contracts § 4.24 (2d ed.1990). In my view, there was no need for Allianz to offer anything to Richards to obtain his agreement to “discharge” Allianz from any duties owed to Richards under the 1966 and 1968 contracts because those contracts and any duties owed to Richards under those contracts were terminated by Allianz’s exercise of the termination-at-will provisions contained in the 1966 and 1968 contracts. I view the 1996 agreement as a completely new contract supported by its own consideration (Allianz’s agreement to employ Richards subsequent to the date that the 1966 and 1968 contracts terminated pursuant to the December 21, 1995, notice), rather than a substituted contract.