The Parol Evidence Rule - Exceptions; the Partial Integration and Collateral Contracts Doctrines Durham V
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Parol Evidence Rules and the Mechanics of Choice
Georgetown University Law Center Scholarship @ GEORGETOWN LAW 2019 Parol Evidence Rules and the Mechanics of Choice Gregory Klass Georgetown University Law Center, [email protected] This paper can be downloaded free of charge from: https://scholarship.law.georgetown.edu/facpub/2048 https://ssrn.com/abstract=3150616 Gregory Klass, Parol Evidence Rules and the Mechanics of Choice, 20 Theoretical Inq. L. 457 (2019). This open-access article is brought to you by the Georgetown Law Library. Posted with permission of the author. Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarship.law.georgetown.edu/facpub Part of the Contracts Commons, and the Evidence Commons 457 Parol Evidence Rules and the Mechanics of Choice Gregory Klass* Scholars have to date paid relatively little attention to the rules for deciding when a writing is integrated. These integration rules, however, are as dark and full of subtle difficulties as are other parts of parol evidence rules. As a way of thinking about Hanoch Dagan and Michael Heller’s The Choice Theory of Contracts, this Article suggests we would do better with tailored integration rules for two transaction types. In negotiated contracts between firms, courts should apply a hard express integration rule, requiring firms to say when they intend a writing to be integrated. In consumer contracts, standard terms should automatically be integrated against consumer- side communications, and never integrated against a business’s communications. The argument for each rule rests on the ways parties make and express contractual choices in these types of transactions. Whereas Dagan and Heller emphasize the different values at stake in different spheres of contracting, differences among parties’ capacities for choice — or the “mechanics of choice” — are at least as important. -
Introduction
17 May 2016 Learn With Us: Boilerplate clauses Jenny Mee, Partner, K&L Gates © Copyright 2016 by K&L Gates. All rights reserved. INTRODUCTION This publication is for informational purposes and does not contain or convey legal advice. The information herein should not be used or relied upon in regard to any particular facts or circumstances 5/17/2016 without first consulting a lawyer. ©2016 K&L Gates LLP. All Rights Reserved. 1 WHAT IS A “BOILERPLATE” CLAUSE? Boilerplate is any text that is or can be reused in new contexts or applications without being greatly changed from the original (Wikipedia) In contract law, the term "boilerplate language" describes the parts of a contract that are considered standard (Wikipedia) klgates.com 3 ETYMOLOGY ° Wikipedia: ° "Boiler plate" originally referred to the sheet steel used to make boilers ° The analogy between the curved steel used to make water boilers and curved metal used to print prepared text was based on: ° the curved shape of the plate; and ° the fact that it had been prepared elsewhere before being incorporated into a downstream producer’s finished product ° In the field of printing, the term dates back to the early 1900s klgates.com 4 This publication is for informational purposes and does not contain or convey legal advice. The information herein should not be used or relied upon in regard to any particular facts or circumstances 5/17/2016 without first consulting a lawyer. ©2016 K&L Gates LLP. All Rights Reserved. 2 EXAMPLES OF BOILERPLATE CLAUSES ° “General” clause at the back, covering (eg): ° Governing law and jurisdiction ° Notices ° Entire agreement ° Further assurances ° No waiver ° Severability ° Contra proferentum (no adverse interpretation) ° Standard definitions and interpretation provisions ° Other standard clauses ° eg force majeure, termination, insurance, etc klgates.com 5 AGENDA FOR THIS SESSION ° Entire agreement clauses ° Set-off clauses ° No waiver clauses klgates.com 6 This publication is for informational purposes and does not contain or convey legal advice. -
Law 410 CONTRACTS BUCKWOLD
Law 410 CONTRACTS BUCKWOLD 1 FORMATION: Is there a contract? In order to have a contract, you must have: o Capacity to contract: Note that minors can enforce a contract against adults, but adults cannot enforce against minors. o Consensus ad idem – ie “meeting of the minds”: Parties must be in agreement to the same terms. Offer & acceptance . Certainty as to terms o Consideration: Parties must have exchanged value not necessarily money, but what they deem to be value. 2 types of contract: o Bilateral: promissory offer by X + acceptance by Y entailing a reciprocal promise . E.g. X offers to sell car to Y for $5000 (offer). Y agrees to by the car (acceptance) = Contract! Which includes: Express terms (e.g. price, model, payment, etc.) Implied terms (implied on basis of presumed intention) o Unilateral: promissory offer by X + acceptance by Y through performance of requested act(s) . E.g. X offers to give Y a sandwich if Y dusts X‟s house (offer). Y dusts (acceptance) = Contract! Which includes: Express terms Implied terms (see above) TERMS OF CONTRACT Note: As a general rule, terms of a contract are those expressly established by the offer plus terms that may be implied. (See MJB Enterprises for more on implied terms) Does lack of subjective knowledge of the terms of an offer preclude recognition and enforcement of an unknown term? No. If the terms are readily accessible, then signing the contract (or clicking “I accept”) constitutes agreeing to them. Rudder v. Microsoft Corp Class action lawsuit against Microsoft; Microsoft said -
SAMPLE NOTES from OUR LLB CORE GUIDE: Contract Law Privity Chapter
SAMPLE NOTES FROM OUR LLB CORE GUIDE: Contract Law Privity chapter LLB Answered is a comprehensive, first-class set of exam-focused study notes for the Undergraduate Law Degree. This is a sample from one of our Core Guides. We also offer dedicated Case Books. Please visit lawanswered.com if you wish to purchase a copy. Notes for the LPC are also available via lawanswered.com. This chapter is provided by way of sample, for marketing purposes only. It does not constitute legal advice. No warranties as to its contents are provided. All rights reserved. Copyright © Answered Ltd. PRIVITY KEY CONCEPTS 5 DOCTRINE OF PRIVITY Under the common law: A third party cannot… enforce , be liable for, or acquire rights under … a contract to which he is not a party. AVOIDING THE DOCTRINE OF PRIVITY The main common law exceptions are: AGENCY RELATIONSHIPS ASSIGNMENT TRUSTS JUDICIAL INTERVENTION The main statutory exception is: CONTRACTS (RIGHTS OF THIRD PARTIES) ACT 1999 44 PRIVITY WHAT IS PRIVITY? “The doctrine of privity means that a contract cannot, as a general rule, confer PRIVITY rights or impose obligations arising under it on any person except the parties to it.” Treitel, The Law of Contract. Under the doctrine of privity: ACQUIRE RIGHTS UNDER A third party cannot BE LIABLE FOR a contract to which he is not a party. ENFORCE NOTE: the doctrine is closely connected to the principle that consideration must move from the promisee (see Consideration chapter). The leading cases on the classic doctrine are Price v Easton, Tweddle v Atkinson and Dunlop Pneumatic Tyre Co Ltd v Selfridges & Co Ltd. -
IN the COURT of APPEALS of IOWA No. 9-342 / 08-1570 Filed
IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF IOWA No. 9-342 / 08-1570 Filed July 22, 2009 ADDISON INSURANCE COMPANY, Plaintiff-Appellant, vs. KNIGHT, HOPPE, KURNICK & KNIGHT, L.L.C., Defendant-Appellee. ________________________________________________________________ Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Linn County, Mitchell E. Turner, Judge. Appellant appeals the grant of summary judgment and asserts legal malpractice against its former counsel. AFFIRMED. Robert Hogg and Patrick M. Roby of Elderkin & Pirnie, P.L.C., Cedar Rapids, for appellant. James E. Shipman and Chad M. VonKampen of Simmons Perrine Moyer Bergman, P.L.C., Cedar Rapids, and David Macksey and Victor J. Pioli of Johnson & Bell, Ltd., Chicago, Illinois, for appellee. Heard by Sackett, C.J., and Vogel and Miller, JJ. 2 VOGEL, J. Addison Insurance Company (Addison) appeals the grant of summary judgment in favor of its former counsel, Knight, Hoppe, Kurnik & Knight, L.L.C. (Knight) on a legal malpractice claim. We affirm. I. Background Facts and Proceedings The underlying lawsuit was brought in New York on March 24, 1995, by the administratrix of the Gary Ketten Estate after Ketten was killed in a vehicle collision on April 2, 1993. The suit generally alleged Knoedler Manufacturing Company (Old Knoedler) was liable for the manufacture of a defective truck seat. Addison insured Old Knoedler at the time of the accident. On December 17, 1993, approximately nine months after the accident, Old Knoedler was sold to Sturhand Investments, Inc., who also purchased the name Knoedler Manufacturers, Inc., (New Knoedler). The sale was made under an asset purchase agreement.1 Addison also insured New Knoedler from December 18, 1993, to December 18, 1994, but provided no coverage to New Knoedler for the date of the accident, nor was there any assignment of insurance coverage in the asset purchase agreement. -
Misrepresentation: the Pitfalls of Pre-Contract Statements
inbrief Misrepresentation: the pitfalls of pre-contract statements Inside What makes a misrepresentation actionable? Causes of action Remedies Risk management Practical tips inbrief Introduction Prior to the conclusion of a contract What makes a misrepresentation complete the work in the stated timescale. parties will often make statements actionable? However, the statement of opinion carries with it an implied representation of fact, namely that to each other - during negotiations, There are various conditions that must be satisfied the supplier in fact held such an opinion. In an in tender documents and in a variety to make a misrepresentation actionable: appropriate context, it also carries with it an of other ways. Most pre-contract implied representation of fact that the supplier 1. There must be a statement by the statements are carefully considered. had reasonable grounds for holding that representor or his agent. The statement But sometimes statements are made opinion and perhaps also the further implied can be oral, written or by conduct. which are false or misleading. When representation that it had carried out a proper false statements induce an innocent 2. The statement must be a statement of fact analysis of the amount of time needed to (as opposed to a statement of opinion or complete the work. Proving that those implied party to enter into a contract the future intention). representations of fact were false would in consequences can be serious. principle lead to liability in misrepresentation. 3. The representation must be made to the The purpose of this guide is to representee or to a class of which the The key point is that actionable consider the litigation risks generated representee is a member. -
National Bank of Harvey V. Pauly, 280 Nw2d 85
|N.D. Supreme Court| National Bank of Harvey v. Pauly, 280 N.W.2d 85 (N.D. 1979) Filed May 9, 1979 [Go to Documents] IN THE SUPREME COURT STATE OF NORTH DAKOTA The National Bank of Harvey, a national banking association, Plaintiff and Appellee v. Donald P. Pauly, d.b.a. Don Pauly Cheese, Inc., and Don Pauly Cheese, Inc., a Wisconsin corporation, Defendant and Appellant Civil No. 9563 Appeal from a Judgment of the First Judicial District Court, the Honorable John O. Garaas, Judge. AFFIRMED. Opinion of the Court by Sand, Justice. Lamb, Schaefer, McNair & Larson, P.O. Box 2189, Fargo, for Plaintiff and Appellee; argued by Leland M. Stenehjem, Jr. Schlosser & Schmitz, P.O. Box 1762, Bismarck, for Defendant and Appellant; argued by Orell D. Schmitz. [280 N.W.2d 86] National Bank of Harvey v. Pauly Civil 9563 Sand, Justice. The issue involved in this case concerns the admissibility of parol evidence to vary the terms of a written notation contained on the face of a check. The appellant, drawer of the check, argued it was error on the part of the trial court to allow the admission of parol evidence to establish an oral agreement varying the terms of a notation which stated the purpose for which the check was issued. We affirm. The National Bank of Harvey, appellee, filed a summons and complaint on 3 August 1977 seeking judgment against Donald P. Pauly, individually, and Don Pauly Cheese, Inc., a Wisconsin corporation, for payment on a $30,000 promissory note plus interest. The defendant appellant answered, asserting as an affirmative defense that the note had been satisfied as evidenced by a draft on the account of Don Pauly Cheese, dated 26 July 1975 in the amount of $30,000 payable to the National Bank of Harvey. -
Beyond Unconscionability: the Case for Using "Knowing Assent" As the Basis for Analyzing Unbargained-For Terms in Standard Form Contracts
Beyond Unconscionability: The Case for Using "Knowing Assent" as the Basis for Analyzing Unbargained-for Terms in Standard Form Contracts Edith R. Warkentinet I. INTRODUCTION People who sign standard form contracts' rarely read them.2 Coun- sel for one party (or one industry) generally prepare standard form con- tracts for repetitive use in consecutive transactions.3 The party who has t Professor of Law, Western State University College of Law, Fullerton, California. The author thanks Western State for its generous research support, Western State colleague Professor Phil Merkel for his willingness to read this on two different occasions and his terrifically helpful com- ments, Whittier Law School Professor Patricia Leary for her insightful comments, and Professor Andrea Funk for help with early drafts. 1. Friedrich Kessler, in a pioneering work on contracts of adhesion, described the origins of standard form contracts: "The development of large scale enterprise with its mass production and mass distribution made a new type of contract inevitable-the standardized mass contract. A stan- dardized contract, once its contents have been formulated by a business firm, is used in every bar- gain dealing with the same product or service .... " Friedrich Kessler, Contracts of Adhesion- Some Thoughts About Freedom of Contract, 43 COLUM. L. REV. 628, 631-32 (1943). 2. Professor Woodward offers an excellent explanation: Real assent to any given term in a form contract, including a merger clause, depends on how "rational" it is for the non-drafter (consumer and non-consumer alike) to attempt to understand what is in the form. This, in turn, is primarily a function of two observable facts: (1) the complexity and obscurity of the term in question and (2) the size of the un- derlying transaction. -
Parol Evidence of Fraud Is Admissible to Prove the Invalidity of a Contract - Riverisland Cold Storage, Inc
William Mitchell Law Review Volume 40 | Issue 1 Article 5 2013 He Said She Said: Parol Evidence of Fraud Is Admissible to Prove the Invalidity of a Contract - Riverisland Cold Storage, Inc. v. Fresno-Madera Production Credit Ass'n Kathryn Albergotti Sascha Yim Follow this and additional works at: http://open.mitchellhamline.edu/wmlr Recommended Citation Albergotti, Kathryn and Yim, Sascha (2013) "He Said She Said: Parol Evidence of Fraud Is Admissible to Prove the Invalidity of a Contract - Riverisland Cold Storage, Inc. v. Fresno-Madera Production Credit Ass'n," William Mitchell Law Review: Vol. 40: Iss. 1, Article 5. Available at: http://open.mitchellhamline.edu/wmlr/vol40/iss1/5 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Law Reviews and Journals at Mitchell Hamline Open Access. It has been accepted for inclusion in William Mitchell Law Review by an authorized administrator of Mitchell Hamline Open Access. For more information, please contact [email protected]. © Mitchell Hamline School of Law Albergotti and Yim: He Said She Said: Parol Evidence of Fraud Is Admissible to Prove HE SAID SHE SAID: PAROL EVIDENCE OF FRAUD IS ADMISSIBLE TO PROVE THE INVALIDITY OF A CONTRACT—RIVERISLAND COLD STORAGE, INC. V. FRESNO-MADERA PRODUCTION CREDIT ASS’N Kathryn Albergotti† and Sascha Yim†† I. INTRODUCTION ...................................................................136 II. HISTORY ..............................................................................139 A. The Parol Evidence Rule ..................................................139 B. The Codification of the Parol Evidence Rule in the California Statutes ..........................................................139 C. The Parol Evidence Rule—Case Law ................................140 D. The Exception: Permitting Parol Evidence of Fraud to Establish the Invalidity of the Instrument...........................141 E. -
The Objective Theory ®F Contract and the Rule in V Estrange V
VOL. L11 SEPTEMBER 1974 SEPTEM RE No. 3 THE OBJECTIVE THEORY ®F CONTRACT AND THE RULE IN V ESTRANGE V. GRAUCOB Halifax, N.S. Introduction In a recent article, J. R. Spencer criticizes the so-called rule in L'Estrange v. Graucob' on the ground that it contradicts the settled theory of agreement which underlies the law of contract generally? It seems, he says, to be generally accepted that a person who signs a contractual document may not dispute his agreement to any of the terms which it contains, unless he can establish one of three defences : (a) fraud, (b) misrepresentation, or (c) non est factum.' Spencer submits that this rule is wrong, and that there is a fourth defence which ought to be open to the party who signed the document, namely the defence that he simply did not agree to the term in question. Everyone says that the common law theory of agreement is, "objective", which means that the parties have to be judged by what they outwardly ap- peared to decide rather than by what they inwardly meant to decide. But this, Spencer claims, is vague, and to see what this "objective" theory really means we must look at the cases upon which it is based. One of these cases is Smith v. Hughes.' Although it usually features under "mistake", mistake is often no more than the other side of agreement. According to Smith v. Hughes, * R. A. Salnek, of the Faculty of Law, Dalhousie University, Halifax, N.S. '[193412 K.B. 394. Signature, Consent, and the 11le in L'Estrange v. -
Re-Defining Privity of Contract: Brown V. Belleville (City) 731
RE-DEFINING PRIVITY OF CONTRACT: BROWN V. BELLEVILLE (CITY) 731 RE-DEFINING PRIVITY OF CONTRACT: BROWN V. BELLEVILLE (CITY) M.H. OGILVIE* I. INTRODUCTION The classical definition of the common law doctrine of privity states that “a contract cannot (as a general rule) confer rights or impose obligations arising under it on any person except the parties to it.”1 The latter part of the proposition is uncontroversial since it is universally acknowledged to be unjust for parties to agree to impose an obligation on an unsuspecting other and thereby be able to sue to enforce that obligation. The former part of the proposition is controversial, particularly where the expressed purpose of the contract is to bestow a benefit on another. The controversial part of that proposition is the implication that a third party could, by virtue of the contract, obtain a legal right to sue to enforce an agreement made for the third party’s benefit when the third party is not a party to the consideration, that is, has contributed nothing to the exchange, and, therefore, should not be entitled to enforce the agreement. By definition, contract law is about the enforcement of promises exchanged by the parties who have voluntarily consented and contributed to that exchange, and anticipate benefiting from it in a way meaningful to each other. The doctrine of consideration serves the important function of identifying the parties to the exchange, but it does not necessarily identify who is to benefit from it; a party to the consideration could well have entered the agreement to purchase something to bestow as a gift on another in the future. -
United States District Court Eastern District of Louisiana
Case 2:02-cv-00236-HGB-ALC Document 176 Filed 04/14/08 Page 1 of 3 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT EASTERN DISTRICT OF LOUISIANA BANK OF LOUISIANA CIVIL ACTION VERSUS NO. 02-0236 AETNA US HEALTHCARE, INC., SECTION: “C” (5) AETNA LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY, AND AETNA INSURANCE COMPANY OF CONNECTICUT ORDER AND REASONS Before the Court is a Motion in Limine to Exclude to Preclude Evidence Regarding Pre- Contract Matters, filed by the plaintiff, Bank of Louisiana (“BOL”) (Rec. Doc. 167). The defendants, Aetna US Healthcare, Inc., Aetna Life Insurance Company, and Aetna Insurance Company of Connecticut (“Aetna”), oppose the motion. Having considered the record, the memoranda of counsel and the law, the Court has determined that the Motion in Limine should be granted in part, and denied in part. In their motion, BOL argues that the contract between itself and Aetna was an integrated agreement, and thus, parol evidence regarding “pre-contract materials” should be excluded from evidence. In opposition, Aetna asserts that the “pre-contract materials” are necessary to clarify the terms of the agreement. Indeed, Aetna maintains that the contract’s provisions are 1 Case 2:02-cv-00236-HGB-ALC Document 176 Filed 04/14/08 Page 2 of 3 susceptible to more than one interpretation, and that parol evidence is needed to illustrate the parties’ true intentions. Finally, Aetna argues that the “pre-contract materials” are necessary to rebut BOL’s detrimental reliance claim. The general rule regarding parol evidence is contained in Louisiana Civil Code Art. 1848: Testimonial or other evidence may not be admitted to negate or vary the contents of an authentic act or an act under private signature.