This $87.8 million mansion went to auction?
A mansion (not the above mansion) went to auction and the high bid was $45.76 million. A news headline thereafter …
Category Archives: Contract law
Do you have to auction … anything?
We have run an auction house since 1999. In that time, we’ve learned that there are some who attempt to …
Must, shall, should, will, may …
Auctioneers are confronted with any number of laws. Legislators author bills that become law when a governor or the President …
Auctioneers: Yes, yep, yeah, yup … or what?
Ringmen (and ring women) often have to communicate that a bid has been offered by a bidder so that the …
Properly setting up … buy backs?
I know it happens, particularly in the online auction world, but the public (other bidders) detest the practice. You consign …
That new seductive advice
You’ve been exercising, eating right, and getting enough sleep. Imagine I want to get your attention. If I publish an …
A centralized list of “bad bidders?”
Many auctioneers are advocating for some type of centralized list (database) of bad bidders — bidders who bid and don’t …
Variation by agreement, not uniform
We regularly write to [attempt to] help auctioneers stay out of court, rather than attempting to win in court, or …
Buyer’s Premiums & Agency Duty
The suggestion apparently is that the buyer’s premium belongs to the auctioneer no matter. This is absolutely not true. The …
What is a “priceless” auction item?
What is a “priceless” auction item? Could an auctioneer exclaim, “This item is priceless?” What are the implications of such, …
Buyer’s Premiums Basics
Buyer’s premiums have been used at auctions in the United States since 1977 — over 40 years. Yet, there remain …
Credit cards and surcharges
We were one of the first auctioneers (1993) to accept credit cards at all our auctions including even on-site auctions …
Auctions & woefully uninformed reporting
The Centralia, Washington Police Department is now using eBay to sell seized goods, instead of traditional auctioneers. An article in …
Tom Brady’s “final” touchdown ball
Tom Brady [Brady] had apparently decided to retire. Lelands was selling Brady’s final touchdown football of his career. The football …
The auction industry and enmity
It took me a while to realize that the auction industry is much like industry generally — in that like …
Only the first sentence of § 1-302?
The Uniform Commercial Code § 1-302 titled “Variation by Agreement” clearly says (emphasis added:) (a) Except as otherwise provided in …
Can an auctioneer breach a contract for any reason?
Contracts between auctioneers and sellers, consignors, and consignees typically bind the principal to rightfully convey ownership, provide clear title, and …
Auctions, inflation, & deflation
Why does anyone attend (or otherwise place bids) at any auction? We have held for years, the likely reason (or …
Because it’s your policy?
Let’s see … what is an auctioneer’s job? To maximize price for our seller/client? To solve the seller/client’s problem? Indeed …
Buyers paying more (and more) of the costs
Buyer’s premiums continue to rise. In fact, I’ve heard for years that “nobody pays any attention to them” so why …
Mike Brandly, Auctioneer Blog 