Moore v. Eisaman

Citations

• 201 Pa. 190
• 50 A. 982
• 1902 Pa. LEXIS 802

Syllabus

<p>Guaranty—Promise to pay the debt of another—Parol evidence—Act of April 26, 1855, P. L. 308.</p> <p>Under the Act of April 26, 1855, P. L. 308, no parol testimony can be admitted to establish a guaranty or engagement to pay the indebtedness of another when it exceeds $20.00. The entire contract must be in writing, and oral testimony is not admissible to add to or to supplement the writing in order to complete an insufficient written promise.</p> <p>A defendant’s liability on a guaranty of another’s indebtedness cannot be established partly by parol and partly by written evidence; the whole agreement or memorandum thereof must be in writing. There must be a consideration to support the contract, but it is not part of the promise required to be in writing, and may be established by parol.</p> <p>In an action on an alleged guaranty of a contract where it appears that the defendant had written at the end of the contract the letters “O. K.” and then signed his name, parol evidence is not admissible to show that the plaintiffs relied on the writing as a guaranty, or that the parties acted on the understanding that the writing was a guaranty. The most that the plaintiffs could show by parol evidence was that the letters imported and meant a guaranty in trade circles.</p>