Plaintiff milk producer filed an action in the Superior Court of Los Angeles County (California) against defendant creamery and unions for breach of contract. The trial court entered judgment for and awarded damages to the milk producer, and the creamery appealed.

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Overview

Despite a contract to purchase the milk producer’s milk, the creamery refused to accept the same. The creamery’s union employees refused to accept the milk producer’s product because the milk producer signed a collective bargaining agreement with another union. The milk producer brought suit against the creamery and such unions. The trial court found that the creamery breached the contract with the milk producer and awarded damages to the milk producer. The creamery appealed. The court held that the creamery failed to meet the burden of proving that performance of the contract was impossible; that there was no evidence that the creamery employees’ union would call a strike if the milk producer’s milk was received by the creamery; that a proximate result of the creamery’s refusal to take the milk producer’s milk was the milk producer’s inability to find a market; that the trial court was justified in concluding that the only market available to the milk producer was one other creamery which bought the milk producer’s milk; and that the difference between the price the other creamery paid and that specified in the contract with the first creamery was a proper measure of damages.

Outcome

The court affirmed the judgment against the creamery for breach of contract.