Gary Flanary, et al. v. Carl Gregory Dodge of Johnson City, LLC

Gary Flanary filed suit against Carl Gregory Dodge of Johnson City, LLC (“the dealership”) and alleged that the dealership, without negotiation and without his consent or knowledge, had charged him an “administrative fee” in connection with his purchase of a vehicle. Flanary claimed that this practice violated, inter alia, the Tennessee Consumer Protection Act (“the TCPA”). He sought class action certification. The dealership filed a motion for summary judgment, relying upon the arbitration agreement (“the Agreement”) signed by Flanary to support its position that Flanary was required to arbitrate his claims. The trial court stated that it personally did not believe an agreement to arbitrate under the circumstances of this case was fair; but, nevertheless, it opined that it felt compelled by the current state of the law to hold that arbitration was mandated by the terms of the Agreement. Flanary appeals the trial court’s order requiring him to submit to arbitration. We affirm the judgment below to the extent the trial court, albeit reluctantly, held that the Agreement, on its face, is enforceable. However, based upon our determination that there is a genuine issue of material fact as to whether there was mutuality with respect to the obligation to arbitrate, we vacate so much of the trial court’s judgment as holds that the parties entered into a contract to arbitrate. Accordingly, we remand for further proceedings on Flanary’s complaint.