Ford sues John Cena for reselling recently purchased Ford GT(Update: Settled, money goes to charity)
- Thread starter FriskyCanuck
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It's pretty common for negotiating parties to include anything they think they can get away with in contracts, regardless of whether it's within the law.
Remember that time Jeremy Clarkson bought a Ford GT and was really excited about it and then every week for a season of Top Gear would say something else broke or went wrong with it and in the end he returned it and vowed never to buy a Ford GT again because it was such a miserable experience?
That was some good publicity from a celebrity.
That was some good publicity from a celebrity.
They did this with the Enzo right? It's the only one I can think of where they approached specific people about it.
But it's pretty black and white. This isn't just some random clause thrown into every contract for any car Ford makes. This was a collector's car which required a selective application process because Ford wanted to control who could own one. The entire point of the application process is defeated if the cars can be immediately flipped to whomever Ford chose not to sell the car to.
Ford's going to win this for sure. Cena is definitely going to settle and lose everything he made plus some as part of the bargain.
Like I said earlier, there are some exceptions, such as contracting away torts, you can't do that (in general).
But for the most part, the terms of the contract are the terms of the contract, and they will be upheld. This is all about a prohibition about selling the car, which Cena ignored. Now Ford wants fair compensation, and Cena isn't playing ball. I suspect Ford would be willing to take the entirety of the profit Cena made from selling the car, but I also suspect Cena isn't willing to offer that.
You know I watched that Ford vs Ferrari documentary and heard they were trying to get back in again in a bigger way but completely forgot about it.
He approached them and also signed it to get a car on the cheap. It is his fault
If we're talking about cost to make... everything in the world is over priced.
Cena was able to flip it for a profit in under a month...
Cena applied to get this car please remember. He went to them.
People here have way too much faith in the power of contracts made up by non-authorities. I'm not saying Cena won't get into shit for this, but a lot of people seem to apply this thinking to pretty much anything. "Oh fuck I signer a contract that said I'll have to give away all of my possessions to a man if I rode a bicycle this month!". Contracts aren't just automatically enforceable by law. The way Cena went about this will propably result in him getting bitten in the ass in some manner though.
Does the contract supersede the first sale doctrine? It's hard to argue that Cena selling the car actively harms ford in any way. Suing a celebrity will most certainly harm them more and would call into question their motives.
If Cena signed a contract and broke it.. he loses. Almost certainly so because Fords legal team wrote this up and it was well versed prior to the sale. Not the same as you writing up your own contract and someone fool signs it for some reason.
Plus Ford (or any company for that reason) needs to preserve the integrity of these obligations in principle. If Cena can get away with breaking these kinds of contracts, they hold no value then. For that reason, dude is going to get sued and likely lose.
Plus Ford (or any company for that reason) needs to preserve the integrity of these obligations in principle. If Cena can get away with breaking these kinds of contracts, they hold no value then. For that reason, dude is going to get sued and likely lose.
To his credit, he never said he didn't love the car. Just chose not to deal with it anymore.
One of the most beautiful cars ever made. Bad PR for Ford though, looking like Lars back in the Napster days isn't a consumer-first approach.
That's only applicable to copyrights and trademarks. Has nothing to do with goods.
Nah, it's not just the Ford ornament (I agree it's dated and needs to go). I don't like the Honda/Acura logo either but I really like the design of the new NSX.
If it's his property then he should be able to sell it whenever the fuck he wants.
Last time I purchased a Ford the transmission died 10 months in.
Last time I purchased a Ford the transmission died 10 months in.
You take the PR hit to preserve the contractual obligations for past and future owners of these kinds of vehicles.
I can do whatever I want with the video games I buy too regardless of the nonsense companies want me to agree to before I can play it.
"Remember, you don't OWN this game - you're just licensing it from us!"
ahaha.wav
"Remember, you don't OWN this game - you're just licensing it from us!"
ahaha.wav
I mean the Fiesta ST and Focus ST/RS are an absolute blast to drive. I've had just as much fun in those as I've had in a McLaren 540c for example.
They are extremely fun.
Almost positive they did it for the LaFerrari as well and I think on a few of the Speciale models.
You can put any manufacturer in there and someone will say things like that. "LOL Honda?, "LOL, Mercades?", "LOL, Chevrolet?" People think they know more than they do.
The point is, comparing something like a Focus or Fiesta to a GT is beyond ridiculous. The former models are obviously going to be inferior, they're your bog-standard, everyday car, whereas a GT is a custom-tuned, refined supercar. You can't compare the two.
I would imagine that Ford has significant legal representation that confirms and probably writes the company's contracts. Especially for a specific promotion like this originating from corporate level. It's not some add on clause by a Ford salesman.
Now Cena wants to cry that it's not legal? Good luck with that champ. The Ford legal team probably ensured that it was perfectly legal.
Now Cena wants to cry that it's not legal? Good luck with that champ. The Ford legal team probably ensured that it was perfectly legal.
Absolutely has to do with goods, do you think ford doesn't have a trademark for the car?
Meh, just blacklist him from buying any future supercars, and let people know why he's blacklisted. Makes Cena look bad, and Ford comes out looking merciful.
Any press is good press. All this does is get people talking about the 2017 Ford GT. This lawsuit is probably a net gain for Ford even if they lose. Despite people liking celebrities a lot, not many people are going to feel particularly sorry for Cena here when he clearly breached the contract.
The first sale doctrine doesn't apply. That doctrine prevents companies from controlling resale by claiming copyright or trademark infringement. Without it, you couldn't sell a video game because you do not have the right to distribute that copyrighted material. It doesn't apply here (well, it does, but it's not the issue Ford is raising) because the sale prohibition was baked into the contract. When two sophisticated buyers make $500k transaction, the courts are going to look at the contract. Those rulings you hear about consumer protection from hidden contract terms are totally irrelevant because someone spending that much on a car is clearly going to do their research (or at least reasonably should) and it's clearly important to Ford based on their application process.
It's a GT, they could have sold them for much more. As Cena demonstrated.
It was a funny segment on Top Gear, the issue was mostly with the locator thinking his car was stolen and constantly contacting him in the beginning.
Reselling goods made by someone else has often fallen into this category as trademark infringment.
"I think suing the most requested person for the Make A Wish Foundation would be the right move for this company!" said the Ford executive who moments ago had been informed privately that they had gotten the position at Tesla.
There are a bunch of people on here who don't know much about anything outside of games and memes.
Maybe I misunderstood your comment. My mistake!
Obviously it isn't comparable but those models are leagues beyond what people think Fords can be.
I know two people who use them as daily cars to compliment their sports cars.
Cena was pretty stupid to sell the car to someone having signed that contract. Now they will have their day in court, possibly costing Cena more than the cost of the car itself after all is said and done.
That's not how the first sale doctrine works. First, it's mostly applicable to copyrighted works/goods, of which an automobile is not. Second, the application on trademarks only has to do with trademark infringement. There is essentially zero application to the selling of a commercial automobile.
And regardless, I suspect you could contract away any rights under the first sale doctrine.