Legal Question in Business Law in Maryland

Here is my problem:

A vendor sells most of his product to a vendee who turns around and sells the product to dealers in that market. Unfortunately, the vendor and the vendee had a few disputes and decided to end the arrangement after the order for the following year was completed. The vendor sold the vendee the product, and the vendee, instead of their normal practice over the past 20 years of placing the vendor�s product with dealers, places all of the vendor�s product with an online company which the vendee has substantial connections with.

Because the Vendee did not do what it normally did (distribute the product to dealers), other companies who sell similar products were able to take the Vendee�s spot with the dealers. (For example, if Nike was suddenly out of the market for a year, Adidas would grow at the expense of Nike).

Here is the situation. The vendee in this case owns companies which make the same type of product as the vendor. I think that they gave all of the product to the online company for two reasons. First, they were angry over the disputes. Second, they knew this would hurt the vendee and as a result help their companies who make a similar product.

Does the Vendee have a claim? If so, where should I start to look?


Asked on 5/31/12, 2:19 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Cedulie Laumann Arden Law Firm, LLC

Unfortunately your question seeks information beyond the scope of an online post. Generally such matters should be contained in a written contract between the parties. What did the contract say about resale, placement & termination? In the absence of a contract, you would usually look to the UCC for possible remedies. Various other laws may come into play as well, but much depends on the specifics of the situation, where the contract was to be performed and so forth.

You are encouraged to seek competent legal counsel who can review any contract and discuss the particulars of your situation.

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Answered on 6/01/12, 7:27 am


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