Did You Notice?

In his March Illinois Bar Journal article, “Did You Notice,” William G. Beatty outlines the usefulness of breach of warranty actions to provide sellers the opportunity to: 1) cure defects, minimize damages, and improve products; 2) protect the seller’s ability to investigate a breach and to gather evidence; and 3) encourage negotiations and settlement. Beatty notes the absence of such notice from buyer to seller is not an affirmative defense that the seller must assert in the answer to the plaintiff’s complaint alleging breach of warranty. He goes on to show how compliance with the notice requirement of section 2-607 of the Uniform Commercial Code is an essential element of a claim for breach of warranty that must be alleged in the complaint. 

Read the March Illinois Bar Journal’s article, “Did You Notice?”