http://www.CoinlaundryLawyer.com

LOS ANGELES COIN LAUNDRY LAWYER

Myles M. Mattenson is a lawyer with experience representing manufacturers and distributors of coin laundry equipment, as well as purchasers and sellers of coin laundry businesses throughout California.   Mr. Mattenson has authored numerous articles of interest to the coin laundry business community in The Journal published by the Coin Laundry Association as well as Fabricare, the magazine of the Dry Cleaning and Laundry Institute.

Mr. Mattenson also successfully represented a distributor of dry cleaning equipment in an action before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeal which established that valuation of a security interest in the equipment and location of the bankrupt should be based upon the worth “on location” and not “off location.”   This holding is discussed in the published decision, to be found on this website, of Ardmor Vending Co., et al. v. Peter Kim, et al., 130 F.3d 863 (9^th Cir. 1997).

Mr. Mattenson, based upon his many years of experience in this industry, can assist you with coin laundry business issues such as lease review, equipment purchases including security interest acquired by equipment distributors, competition issues, common area maintenance charges, and the purchase or sale or such businesses, including escrow instruction issues, income and expense representations, income and expense projections, and security documentation executed in connection with the purchase or sale of such businesses, including assignments of lease as collateral security, security agreements, and UCC forms.   Mr. Mattenson can also assist with litigation pertaining to the above issues as well as fraud and misrepresentation in the sale of such businesses.

In one notable situation which resulted in litigation prosecuted by Mr. Mattenson’s office, a coin laundry operator was required to leave open not only the door to the dryer area, but also the exterior door so that sufficient combustion area would flow to the dryers.   Most coin laundry operators have heard the expression “make-up air.”   A lesser percentage of operators have heard the expression “combustion air.”   Many think these terms refer to the same concept, but they do not!   Dryers, under the Uniform Commercial Code “shall be assured a sufficient supply of combustion air . . . .”   Insufficient combustion air will cause gas charges to increase and they cause dryers to “run cool” or essentially run with insufficient heat to dry the clothes within the time customarily anticipated.   Make-up air is required to replenish air exhausted by the ventilation system, and the make-up air intake must be located so as to avoid re-circulation of contaminated air within the enclosure in which the dryers are situated, i.e., exhaust duct should not be directed toward a make-up air intake.

If your coin laundry suffers from these issues, you may be entitled to relief from the developer or contractor.   Each state, of course, has enacted statutes of limitation which prohibit pursuing claims after a certain period of time specified in the statute.   A knowledgeable attorney can assist in determining whether you can pursue a claim for any discovered defective construction.