Wondering where I've been?

Probably not, but since I'm ego-centric, I'll tell you (besides, you're the one reading my page). It's exam time at the ol' law school, which means I use the internet to escape having to do productive things for considerably less time each day. Especially since my closed book Agency exam is on Friday. Here's a preview:

When is there an agency relationship?

¶ US v. General Electric Co.

² Price fixing/anti-trust claim

³ Mfg is prohibited from dictating prices at which product is sold by distributors

² GE says distributors are agents and so are selling on behalf of GE: there’s an identity of interest between the principal and the agent

² By finding that GE was selling through agents, not independent distributors, the court found that there was no price fixing/dictating going on

² In GE, the product is being sold for GE’s benefit, not distributors benefit.

³ Commission (= paid agency)

« Can’t sell for a higher price than they are paying (contrast MAI). Principal fixed the price and agent just got the commission

² Arguments against agency

³ Salesman has to pay for storage and transportation, which argues against agency

« These actions are consistent with acting on one’s own behalf

³ Distributors were selling competing products

« Agency is a fiduciary relationship, and selling competing products and taking risk runs counter to this

o Fiduciary relationship arises when one party places trust and confidence in another, and as a result the law places certain obligations on the fiduciary

§ Discharge duties with care and be loyal to the beneficiary

§ Agent is a fiduciary

o Back to GE, the agent is not loyal in selling competing products

Wasn't that fun? I thought so.