Cook v Coldwell banker

@court of appeal

Status: Defendant appealing from judgement of jury verdict awarding plaintiff, a former
salesperson, of damages for breach of bonus agreement

FACTS
 Defendant said salesperson didn’t make accept the bonus offer before it was revoked
 Plaintiff listed and sold real estate as independent contractor
o Worked as salesperson per verbal agreement
 Defendant (through Laiben, a co-owner), verbally announced bonus program In march
o Bonuses over 500 were to be paid at the end of the year
o In September, he verbally announced bonuses would actually be paid next march
 Plaintiff asked if employment is necessary for bonus. He said yes.
 Plaintiff left job in January.
o In march she demanded her bonus be paid
 At trial, Leiben defined that at the march meeting, he said bonuses would be paid at the
end of the year and said he told agents bonus would be paid next march

Defendant is arguing she didn’t tender consideration to support defendents offer of bonus
In other words, she didn’t fulfill her side of the bargain for the other side to owe her
anything

At trial court, jury awarded plaintiff

Defendant appealed, said
Did she accept bonus?

RULE
 Unilateral contrat is based on wish, will, or pleasure of one of the parties
o A promisor does not receive a promise as a consideration for his or her promise
in a unilateral contract
 Klamen
o A unilateral contract lacks consideration for want of mutuality, but when the
promise performs, consideration is supplied, and the contract is enforceable to
the extent performed
 Nilsson
o A promise to pay a bonus in return for an at will employee’s continued
emplyement is an offer for a unilater contract which becomes enforceable when
accepted by the employees performance
  2nd restatement- offer may not be revoked where the offeree has accepted the offer by
substaintial performance

Fact application
 Sufficient evidence that bonus offer induced plaintiff to remain with defendant through
end of year
 Theres evidence that before the offer was modified in September 1991, platinf had
remained with defendant and earned over X in commissions, making her eligible for
offered bonus. Constitutes sufficient evidence of substaintial performance

Issue
 Was there contract
 Did she accept offer