Sateriale v. R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company

697 F.3d 777 (9th Cir. 2012)

Purchase the Printed Copy at bsmsphd.com

Nature of the Case

To access this section all you need to do is click here and register.

Facts

R.J. (D) started a rewards program. Customers who saved the certificates - called C-Notes - could exchange them for merchandise according to terms provided in a catalog. Some but not all of the Camel Cash catalogs stated that Ds could terminate the Camel Cash program without notice. Ps joined the Camel Cash program by purchasing D's products and filling out and submitting signed registration forms to D. Each P got a unique enrollment number that was used in communications between the parties. The number of Camel Cash certificates needed to obtain merchandise varied from as little as 100 to many thousands. This encouraged consumers to buy more packages of cigarettes together with Camel Cash and also to save or obtain Camel Cash certificates to redeem them for more valuable items. In October 2006, D mailed a notice to program members announcing that the program would terminate as of March 31, 2007. Beginning in October 2006, D stopped printing and issuing catalogs and told consumers that it did not have any merchandise available for redemption. Ps attempted, without success, to redeem C-Notes or obtain a catalog during the final six months of the program. Ps had saved hundreds or thousands of Camel Cash certificates that they were unable to redeem. Ps filed a class action complaint for breach of contract, promissory estoppel and violations of two California consumer protection laws. The district court dismissed the action under 12(b)(6).