Kunert

SUMMARY

This case involves the legality of arrangements under which consumers purchase automobiles on credit through conditional sale contracts with automobile dealers. The dealers assign the contracts to finance companies, and the finance companies pay the dealers a portion of the finance charges (called a “dealer participation” or “dealer reserve”) due under the assigned contract.

The consumers in this case assert that payment of the dealer reserve by the finance companies to the dealers is (a) a “commission or other remuneration” prohibited by the Rees-Levering Motor Vehicle Sales and Finance Act (hereafter Rees-Levering Act or Rees-Levering); (b) a secret payment injurious to competition that violates the Unfair Practices Act; and (c) an unlawful, unfair and fraudulent business practice under the unfair competition law. We conclude payment of the dealer reserve does not violate the Rees-Levering Act and is not unlawful under the other statutory provisions at issue. Accordingly, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.

FACTUAL, LEGAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

Several lawsuits were filed, beginning in May 2000, by buyers against numerous automobile dealerships…