9. You are a paralegal with the Law Office of Warren T. Sales. You have been asked to research the following questions and provide answers. These are the facts that Mr. Sales presented to you. Your client is Sue A. Seller. She lives at 3225 Wilmette Avenue, Glenview, Yourstate. The defendants are Lee R. Merchant, owner of Mowers-R-Us,EXERCISES 319 in Glenview, Yourstate, and Manny U. Facture, the owner of a manufac turing concern, which is not incorporated, called Mowers, of Rosemont, Yourstate. Ms. Seller went to the defendant's store, Mowers-R-Us, to pur- chase a lawnmower for her new home. She was a first-time homeowner. She was unfamiliar with lawnmowers. She had never operated a lawn- mower because her brothers always had mowed the lawn when she was a child. When she went to Mowers-R-Us, she asked to speak with the owner. "I want to speak only to the owner," she told Mr. Merchant. "I don't know anything about mowers, and I need to talk with an expert." Mr. Merchant said, "I'm the owner and you couldn't find a better expert anywhere in the state. I have been in the business of selling mowers for more than 40 years. I only sell mowers and the equipment to clean and repair them. Are you familiar with the type of lawnmower you would like?" Mr. Merchant added. "No, I don't know anything about lawnmowers. I just know that I have to have a lawnmower that will mulch my grass clippings because I cannot bag the clippings. The village of Glenview does not permit me to bag the clippings. So the clippings must remain on my lawn," Ms. Seller told Mr. Merchant. "You're absolutely correct. You must have a mulching mower," Mr. Merchant said. "That type of mower will grind the grass clippings and you will not notice them on your grass." "I have the perfect mower for you," Mr. Merchant continued. "It is a used model that will fit into your price range. It is only $200. It is a good brand, a Roro. It will mulch the grass as well as any of the new mowers. This one is true blue. You can purchase a separate mulching blade that will easily attach to it for an additional $50," he added. "Do you think that I need the mulching blade?" Ms. Seller asked. "I've never used a lawnmower so I don't know what to expect, and you appear to be the expert." "I think you could do without the mulching blade unless you want the grass ground up very fine," Mr. Merchant said. "I think that I would like it ground up fine. I'll defer to your judgment. If you think a mulching blade is necessary, then I'll buy that with the mower. Do you think this is the best mower for mulching?" asked Ms. Seller. "Absolutely. I told you it is a true value. It will mulch with the best of them," Mr. Merchant said. "If you think it can do the job, I'll trust your judgment," said Ms. Seller. "I'll take the mower and the mulching blade. Can you install the mulching blade? I don't know anything about the installation." "Sure, we can install any blade for another $30," Mr. Merchant said.320 CHAPTER 14 / RESEARCH STRATEGY "OK. Do you clean up the machine, too?" Ms. Seller asked. "We can do it for an additional $40, or you can do it yourself with the special industrial-strength, nontoxic, nonirritant mower cleaner," Me Merchant told Ms. Seller. Well, I have sensitive skin. Do you really think that the mower cleaner is safe for me to use? I have never used any type of industrial-strength cleaner," Ms. Seller said. Absolutely. I've used the cleaner many times. It is very safe and won't hurt your sensitive skin at all." MS. Seller purchased the mower, the blade, and the cleaner. She used the mower after Mr. Merchant installed the new mulching blade. It barely cut the grass and certainly didn't mulch the clippings into fine pieces as Mr Merchant had claimed. She brought the mower back to Mr. Merchant. He said that he had made to warranties about the mower. He showed her the language on the receipt that said that he did not expressly warrant anything. Ms. Seller brought the mower to a Roro dealer. The owners of the Roro dealership, Abe Saul and Lou T. Wright, said that the mower Ms. Seller had purchased from Mowers-R-Us was not a mulching mower. It was a mower built before mulching was popular. Therefore, it would not per- form the mulching task. It was designed merely to cut the grass. "Any merchant who has been in business for one year or more should have known that mowers built before 1970 were not designed for mulching, Mr. Wright said. He showed Ms. Seller where the manufacturing date appeared on the mower. "Manufactured in August 1969," it said on the plate with the serial number. "Also, mulching blades cannot be placed on these old mowers. Any mower dealer should know that, too," Mr. Wright added. "However, this mower isn't defective. It can cut the grass without mulching it." The mower wasn't Ms. Seller's only problem. She also had used the cleaner while wearing protective gloves. She broke out in a rash all over her hands. Ms. Seller's dermatologist stated that the cleaner was caustic and perme- ated the gloves, causing the rash on Ms. Seller's hands. Ms. Seller is bringing an action against Mr. Merchant and Mr. Facture in the Circuit Court of Cook County, Law Division, in Yourstate. Your research is limited to actions Ms. Seller has against Mr. Merchant for breach of an implied warranty of fitness for a particular purpose. .ivo Answer each of the following questions fully and provide authority- cases, secondary sources, if necessary, or laws- to support your position. Indicate whether the authority is primary or secondary authority and whether it is mandatory or persuasive authority. Remember that your goal is to find the best primary binding authorities.EXERCISES 321 . What law of what jurisdiction governs this problem? What is the highest court in the jurisdiction? b. Where should you begin your research? List any sources you plan to consult. Indicate whether the sources contain primary or secondary sources. Did you use a citator, such as Shepard's or KeyCite, to find addi- tional references? List any finding tools you plan to use. Explain why you plan to use each source. c. Compose a search query after you obtain a working vocabulary on the topic. Run your search. List any secondary and primary sources you consulted. List the sources in order of your consultation. List any find- ing tools you used. Indicate where you located information in these references. d. Based on your research in this jurisdiction, can Ms. Seller sue Mr. Merchant for breach of an implied warranty of fitness for a particular purpose with regard to the lawnmower purchase? Provide any author- ity that supports your position. Use Bluebook format for the citations. If necessary, attach additional pages. Write the holding for each authority or a basic summary of the value of that authority. Indicate whether the authority is primary or secondary and whether it is binding. Validate and update any primary authority you will rely on. e. Based upon the law of this jurisdiction, is Mr. Merchant a merchant? Provide any authority that supports your position. Use Bluebook format. If necessary, attach additional pages. Write the holding for each author- ity or a basic summary of the value of that authority. Indicate whether the authority is primary or secondary and whether it is binding. f. If Ms. Seller is entitled to recovery of damages for breach of an implied warranty of fitness for a particular purpose in this jurisdiction, does the fact that the mower was a "used product" prohibit Ms. Seller's recovery? Provide any authority that supports your position. Use Bluebook format. If necessary, attach additional pages. Write the holding for each author- ity or a basic summary of the value of that authority. Indicate whether the authority is primary or secondary and whether it is binding. g. If Ms. Seller is entitled to recovery of damages for breach of an implied warranty of fitness for a particular purpose, does the fact that the mower was not defective prohibit her recovery? Provide any authority that supports your position. Use Bluebook format. If necessary, attach additional pages. Write the holding for each authority or a basic sum- mary of the value of that authority. Indicate whether the authority is primary or secondary and whether it is binding. h. Does Ms. Seller have a cause of action for breach of an implied warranty of fitness for a particular purpose with regard to the cleaner? Provide any authority that supports your position. Use Bluebook format. If nec essary, attach additional pages. Write the holding for each authority or a basic summary of the value of that authority. Indicate whether the authority is primary or secondary and whether it is binding 1. Validate your research results on either Lexis or Westlaw before sub- mitting your work. Attach the cite-checking results