CASE #1

One day, Winnie looked around his house and finally noticed how shabby it was. Winnie decided to do major renovations to improve his house. In particular, Winnie decided to build a special storage room for fresh vegetables so he never had to worry about them spoiling. Also, Winnie decided to build two more bedrooms so his best friends had somewhere to sleep when they stayed over.

The contractor Winnie hired to renovate his house was good with wood, but not money. The price for the job was $275,000 to be paid in four equal installments. The contractor subcontracted parts of the work to various suppliers and workers including someone in the carpentry, plumbing, and electrical trades. On May 15, the contractor presented a bill for the second installment of $68,750 to cover the work done to that point. Also on May 15, the contractor had the following outstanding accounts relating to the project:

Brian's Electric$25 000

Ernest's Interiors30 000

Tigers Carpentry20 000

Ace Heating35 000

Acme Material Supply40 000

On June 20, the contractor moved to another province leaving behind his business debts. On June 29, each supplier registered valid liens in the amount owed to them, against Winnie's house.What is the main legal issue? What should Winnie have done on May 15? What are the consequences of Winnie's inaction on May 15th?

CASE #2

Sam has just graduated from university and wants to reward himself by buying a Mustang. He finds the perfect car and approaches his bank for a loan. The bank agrees to lend him the money to buy the car and asks him to sign a chattel mortgage to secure the loan. Sam makes the first 12 monthly payments and then misses the next three.Describe the process in which the bank would have taken to secure this chattel mortgage? What are the bank's options upon default?