Ucan

Plaintiff Utility Consumers’ Action Network, Inc. (UCAN), appeals from the summary judgment entered in favor of defendants— numerous AT&T and MediaOne cable Internet service providers—in an action to determine the legality of a late fee liquidated damages provision contained in defendants’ service contracts. Plaintiff also appeals from the concomitant order denying its motion for summary judgment. For the reasons set forth, post, the trial court’s summary judgment orders were correct, and we affirm the judgment that followed.

ISSUE PRESENTED

Businesses with half a million customers use standardized form contracts that include a liquidated damages provision for a late fee whose amount is conceded to be reasonable. Is that provision of a consumer services contract invalid simply because the businesses did not sit down and negotiate the late fee amount individually with each customer? Because the language used by our courts refers to a reasonable endeavor by the parties when setting the amount of liquidated damages, UCAN would have us answer “yes” to that question. Dissection and deconstruction of the decisions underpinning the reasonable endeavor requirement confirm,…