Slattery v. Wells Fargo Armored Service Corp.

366 So.2d. 157 (1979)

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Nature of the Case

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Facts

Wells Fargo (D) announced a reward of $25,000 for information on the arrest and conviction of a robbery of one of its agents and the return of the stolen property. Slattery (P) contends that he was entitled to the reward by virtue of his questioning of the perpetrator during a polygraph examination on an unrelated matter. Eventually, the questioning by P resulted in a statement by the perpetrator that he shot and killed the guard. Eventually, that lead to a conviction and sentencing for the crime. P contends that but for his expertise in interrogation and the operation of the polygraph, the perpetrator would have never been discovered. D refused the reward payment and P sued D. The trial judge rendered summary judgment for D on the grounds that the offer of reward was never accepted by P in that the performance called for by the terms of the offer had never been completed. The reward also has a statement at the end of it that read as follows: and the recovery of valuables lost as a result of this occurrence. All parties agreed that the stolen property belonging to D had never been recovered. The judge held that both requirements of the unilateral contract had to be performed and because the offer called for an arrest and conviction and a return of the stolen property there was no acceptance of the offer. Summary judgment was given D and P appealed.