Horton v. DaimlerChrysler Financial Services Americas, L.L.C.
Texas Court of Appeals
262 S.W.3d 1 (2008)
Commercial Recovery, acting for DaimlerChrysler (defendants), offered to settle a debt dispute with Horton (plaintiff) for $1,000 in two $500 installments due June 15 and June 30, 2003, in exchange for removing negative credit information; Horton's first payment arrived a few days late and his second payment, marked as full satisfaction, arrived after the June 30 deadline, yet both checks were accepted. When Horton later found the negative credit information hadn't actually been removed, he sued for breach of contract, and the trial court granted summary judgment to the defendants on the theory that his late payments meant no contract had ever formed.
Whether, when an offer does not specify a manner of acceptance and the offeree's performance falls short of full compliance with the offer's terms, the offeror's acceptance of that imperfect performance creates a genuine fact issue about whether the offeror waived the unmet requirements.