Exam #_______________
Zamperini: Civ Pro LS2, Final, F08 Page 1 of 2
PART I (1 hour)
[THIS PART CONTAINS ONE ESSAY QUESTION]
Kuckuck Co. is a corporation incorporated in Delaware but with its principal
place of business in Germantown, Maryland. The corporation is a small enterprise owned by the
Kuckuck family and prides itself on building “Kuckuck Cuckoo Clocks” based on centuries-old
Bavarian traditions handed down from generation to generation. Not only are all the clocks
individually produced by hand, but the company also makes all of the component parts,
including the decorations of a tiny village that sits on top, the cuckoo bird, clock face and
internal clock mechanisms. Because of this care and attention to detail, Kuckuck can only
produce about 100 such clocks per year. These clocks are highly valued by collectors and are
considered to be the most reliable. The clocks routinely win first place in International Cuckoo
Clock Competitions, putting those made in Germany to shame.
All the clocks are made at the corporation’s factory in Germantown. Kuckuck Co. sells
its clocks in only two ways. The first is direct sales at its factory outlet store in Germantown; the
second is over its web site www.kuckuckco.com. Kuckuck Co. advertises extensively in
newspapers that circulate in Germantown and neighboring Maryland cities to entice customers to
its outlet store. The advertisements boast that the company accepts advance orders that might
take years to fill and that payment is due when the clock is finished.
The web site contains various pictures of the clocks, including a “streaming video”
showing happy people admiring the clocks and testifying as to their worth and versatility.
Internet users who wish to purchase the product can fill out a form on the internet indicating their
intention to purchase a clock and their willingness to wait for the clock to be built. There are
areas on the form for name, address and what method of payment they will be using when the
clock is ready. Kuckuck Co. then sends a confirmation by mail to the internet user, including an
estimation of how many people are waiting in front of the user and when to expect the completed
clock. Approximately 80% of the clocks are sold at the outlet store; business for the other 20%
comes from the internet site by people located all over the world, although records for the past
few years show that the majority of those sales are to people who live in California.
Arnold and Betty are old friends, platonic roommates and life long residents of Oakland,
California. Arnold is a fan of clocks in general and has dreamed of someday owning his own
Kuckuck clock. Arnold and Betty were recently on a vacation in Maryland, when Arnold
noticed Kuckuck’s “Oktoberfest Special” for clocks in a local newspaper. He and Betty rushed
to the outlet store. Helga Kuckuck, the president of the company was working at the outlet store.
She informed the two Californians that they were the luckiest people in the world. By a strange
quirk of fate, her uncle had just put the finishing touches on a clock destined for a purchaser in
Minnesota; five minutes earlier, that purchaser had called to say that with the recent economic
turmoil he had to cancel his order. Therefore, the clock was available now. Arnold was ecstatic
and quickly paid the asking price of $10,000 for the clock. Arnold then filled out a form with his
name and address in order to be apprised of future products and the two friends thanked Helga
profusely.
