Hyduke's Valley Motors v. Lobel Financial
A wholesale used car dealer sold vehicles to a second used car dealer with the agreement the second dealer would pay for the cars when title was available for transfer. The second dealer sold the vehicles to consumers under conditional sales contracts, sold (and assigned) the conditional sales contracts to two finance companies, and went bankrupt before paying the wholesale dealer for the cars and obtaining certificates of title as required by the terms of the conditional sales contracts. The wholesale dealer filed this action against the finance companies seeking a declaration they were required to pay the wholesale dealer for the vehicles to obtain certificates of title. In a bench trial, the trial court followed this court's decision in Quartz of Southern California, Inc. v. Mullen Bros., Inc. (2007) 151 Cal.App.4th 901 (Quartz), which on largely identical facts held as between the wholesale dealer and the finance company, the wholesale dealer was the legal owner of the title certificates and the finance companies were required to purchase the titles from the wholesale dealer for transfer to the consumer buyers. The finance companies appeal from the judgment raising a variety of contentions, none of which have merit. Court affirm the judgment.
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