[Download] "Charles Bispham, Appellant v. Eli K. Price" by United States Supreme Court " Book PDF Kindle ePub Free
eBook details
- Title: Charles Bispham, Appellant v. Eli K. Price
- Author : United States Supreme Court
- Release Date : January 01, 1853
- Genre: Law,Books,Professional & Technical,
- Pages : * pages
- Size : 76 KB
Description
First Point. The express terms and proper construction of the statement of the accounts between the parties by William Foster, entitle the appellant to a recovery. The 'settlement' or 'statement' of the accounts by Mr. Foster, giving rise to this suit, is careful to provide for any such contingency as that which has occurred. The amount to be paid by Mr. Archer to Mr. Bispham, is declared to be 'in liquidation and full settlement between them, of all matters, claims, and demands, relating to or growing out of the transactions of their late firm, so far as they are now known, ascertained, or believed to exist.' This seems to include every future contingency, and to reserve to each party the benefit of it. To prevent any possible future misunderstanding, however, the paper goes on to provide, First. 'But as liabilities may hereafter be established or ascertained,' Second. 'Or claims received, not now known to exist, growing out of transactions during the partnership for partnership account, it is understood that the same are not embraced in the foregoing settlement and determination by me as the agent and umpire of the parties, and especially any matter of such character contingent on the result of pending suits, is excepted from this adjustment of the affairs of said firm.' It will be observed, that there were no pending suits unless a reference was intended, as was doubtless the case, to the suits by the United States against Mr. Archer on the custom-house duty bonds in question–no others existed. There was one and one only, in New York, besides those, which are the foundation of this suit. And it is submitted that the court below erred in refusing to recognize, as pending suits, those in which judgments had been recovered, but the judgments themselves were unsatisfied–and that, too, when the phrase is used by mercantile men in an informal paper writing.