2 1 In the Words of the Court PER CURIAM, [By the Whole Court] * * * * * * * Under the doctrine of repudiation or anticipatory breach, * * * it is widely accepted that a party's statement of intention not to perform a duty under the contract except under conditions that go beyond the contract constitutes a repudiation. [In Paragraph 11 of the lease,] the parties agreed that * * * RRE would pay the initial cost for fire suppression, and Chalk Supply would repay that amount over 84 months [Despite Paragraph 11, RRE's] e-mail is clear: RRE "will not be willing to invest" the amount necessary for fire suppression unless the parties reviewed "the lease tenure." That is, RRE would not pay for fire suppression unless the parties agreed to a longer lease. * * * This was, then, an anticipatory repudiation of the lease: * * * RRE would not perform a duty under the contract (pay for fire suppression if required) unless Chalk Supply extended the lease (a condition that went beyond the contract). RRE contends that [the] e-mail could not have been an anticipatory repudiation because it "was not unequivocal and was conditioned on the requirement of fire suppression." This argument is meritless.unequivocal and was conditioned on the requirement of fire suppression." This argument is meritiess. Under the lease, RRE was required to pay for re suppression if it was required, so * * * saying that RRE would not pay for fire suppression ifit was required was disavowing the very thing that RRE agreed to do. [Emphasis added] $=lc=k=i= * * * Fire suppression was * * * required by local ordinance. Thus, when [RRE] sent the * * "' e-mail, Paragraph 11 applied, and RRE repudiated its duty under the lease to pay for fire suppression. Under such circumstances, there can be no doubt that following this repudiation, Chalk Supply had a cause of action for breach of contract. Decision and Remedy A state intermediate appellate court affirmed the judgment of the trial court. RRE's e-mail constituted an anticipatory repudiation of the parties' contract, and the landlord [RRE] had to return the money that Chalk Supply had paid in advance of the lease. m Chalk Supply, LLC v. Ribbe Real Estate, LLC Court of Appeals of Michigan, 2020 WL 39991 (2020). Background and Facts Chalk Supply, LLC. buys paints and other products, which it repackages and sells to consumers. Chalk Supply agreed to lease a warehouse from Ribbe Real Estate, LLC [RRE], for eighteen months. Chalk Supply prepaid twelve and a halfmonths' rent to RRE. At Chalk Supply's request, the lease provided that a fire suppression system would be installed, ifrequired, with the cost to be \"divided by 84 months [7 years] of which Tenant will pay in like equal installments during the term of the lease." A local ordinance required a fire suppression system. On receiving an estimate of the cost, however, RRE e-mailed Chalk Supply before the tenant had moved onto the propertythat RRE was not willing to pay for the system without a longer lease term. Chalk Supply filed a suit in a Michigan state court against RRE, claiming breach of contract. The court ruled that RRE's e-mail was an anticipatory repudiation of the parties' lease and ordered RRE, the landlord, to return the money Chalk Supply had paid in advance of the lease term. RRE appealed. In the Words of the Court l Discussion: We will discuss the ease summaries that are in the textbook (e.g., Case 20.], Simmons v. Smith from chapter 20}. As preparation for these discussions, you should read the ease excerpt, compare the topic to corresponding material in the text, and be prepared to answer basic questions about the case, such as: Who are the parties in this case? What went wrong why are they in court? What court is the opinion from is it a trial court or appellate court? What question did the court have to decide in this case? What facts did the court focus on in deciding the case? Your preparation is intended to make it possible for us to have discussion about the case. You do not need to master the topic covered by the ease. My expectation is that you be familiar enough with the material to be able to answer my questions as we work through the subject. If you are able to do this, you will have satised this part of the class participation requirement