Alabama & V. Ry. Co. v. Kropp

Citations

• 129 Miss. 616
• 92 So. 691

Syllabus

<p>1. Evidence. Written release of railroad company from liability cannot be varied by oral evidence to shoiv contemporaneous oral agreement.</p> <p>Where a person injured by a railroad company executed a written release, after full time for consideration, consultation, and investigation, for a valuable consideration, the release being contractual in its recitals, it cannot be varied, contradicted, or added to by oral evidence to show a contemporaneous oral agreement to give the party injured a life job in the service of the company. English v. N. 0. & N. E. R. Co., 100 Miss. 575, 56 South. 665, cited.</p> <p>2. Release. Held that servant could not impeach written release from liability for personal injuries on ground of fraud in procurement.</p> <p>Where a person injured bjr a railroad has full time to learn the law and facts of his injury and executes a written release contractual in its recitals as to consideration, he cannot impeach the written contract for fraud in its procurement by showing the agent of the railroad company stated that the law forbade inserting in a release an agreement to give such person a life job with the railroad, or that the company was not liable for the injury, where there was no confidential or fiduciary relation between the parties, and where each was dealing with the other at arm’s length.</p> <p>3. Release. ‘Where injured servant seeks to rescind release executed for fraud, proof must be clear and convincing.</p> <p>Where a person injured by a railroad executes a release for a valuable consideration and seeks to rescind for fraud in the procurement of a release, the proof of fraud must be clear and convincing, and where the proof of fraud is contradicted by disinterested witnesses and also by the circumstances of the case, the sole testimony of the injured party given several years after the contract will not satisfy the rule.</p> <p>4. Release. Party induced to enter contract by fraudulent representations must rescind promptly and