Wallace v. Tri-State Assembly, LLC

Tyrone Wallace (plaintiff) sued Amazon.com, LLC (defendant), Amazon.com.DEDC, LLC (defendant) (collectively, Amazon), and Tri-State Assembly, LLC (Tri-State) (defendant) after the handlebars on his electric bike came loose, causing Wallace to fall and sustain injury. Wallace’s father had purchased the bike for Wallace through Amazon’s website. A company called Eshion listed the bike for sale on Amazon as a third-party seller. Wallace’s father elected to have Tri-State assemble the bike. Tri-State offered its services on Amazon and was an approved Amazon service provider. Amazon’s conditions of use disclaimed all warranties for products sold on its site by third-party sellers. Amazon’s contract with third-party sellers provided that third parties were responsible for all aspects of a sale, including warranties. Amazon did not sell, manufacture, assemble, or distribute the bike. Eshion shipped the bike directly to Wallace without Amazon ever receiving possession of, control of, or title to the bike. Wallace asserted claims against Amazon for, among other things, breach of the implied warranties of fitness and merchantability. After Tri-State was dismissed from the case, the trial court granted summary judgment in Amazon’s favor. In so doing, the trial court found that Amazon had impliedly warranted neither the bike nor Tri-State’s assembly services. Although Wallace raised a new theory in his summary-judgment response regarding Amazon’s liability for Tri-State’s work, Wallace failed to provide supporting authority for the theory. Therefore, the trial court declined to consider the theory. Wallace appealed to the New York Appellate Division. There, Wallace argued that Amazon was liable for breach of the implied warranties under New York law. Alternatively, Wallace argued that the court should create an equitable remedy extending the implied warranties to Amazon because he had no other means of recovery.