Thought Leadership

The defendant appealed a judgment in which it was determined they violated the Consumer Fraud Act (CFA), N.J.S.A. 56:8-1 to -20, in which they advised the plaintiffs that a motor vehicle had no rust, when the entire undercarriage had massive rust. Unlike the elements of common law fraud, the CFA does not require the plaintiff to have reasonably relied on the misrepresentation of the defendant or that the defendant have knowledge or belief of the statement’s falsity. An affirmative misrepresentation in the context of the CFA is one which is material to the transaction that is found to be a false statement and induced the buyer to make the purchase. Materiality is based on how a reasonable person would attach importance to its existence in determining a choice of action. The court found that the “as is” provision in the sale contract could not waive a consumer’s statutory rights under the CFA. Accordingly, specific language in a sales contract does not waive material misrepresentations in the procurement of a sale.

^{Case Law Alerts, 2nd Quarter, April 2021 is prepared by Marshall Dennehey Warner Coleman & Goggin to provide information on recent developments of interest to our readers. This publication is not intended to provide legal advice for a specific situation or to create an attorney-client relationship. Copyright © 2021 Marshall Dennehey Warner Coleman & Goggin, all rights reserved. This article may not be reprinted without the express written permission of our firm.}