RIVERISLAND COLD STORAGE, INC. v. FRESNO-MADERA PRODUCTION CREDIT ASSN.
191 Cal.App.4th 611 (2011)
RIVERISLAND COLD STORAGE, INC., et al., Plaintiffs and Appellants,
v.
FRESNO-MADERA PRODUCTION CREDIT ASSOCIATION, Defendant and Respondent.
No. F058434.
Court of Appeals of California, Fifth District.
January 3, 2011.
OPINIONHILL, P. J.—
Plaintiffs appeal from a judgment entered against them after defendant's motion for summary judgment was granted. Plaintiffs' complaint alleged causes of action including fraud, negligent misrepresentation, rescission and reformation; plaintiffs alleged they signed a written agreement with defendant, but they were induced to do so by defendant's oral misrepresentations of the terms contained in the written agreement, made at the time of execution of the agreement. The court granted defendant's motion for summary judgment after ruling that plaintiffs' evidence of misrepresentations was inadmissible pursuant to the parol evidence rule, and therefore plaintiffs had not presented admissible evidence raising a triable issue of material fact that would prevent entry of judgment against them. We find the evidence fell within the fraud exception to the parol evidence rule and should have been admitted to raise a triable issue of material fact in opposition to defendant's motion. Accordingly, we reverse the judgment.
FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUNDOn January 1, 2007, plaintiffs' operating loan from defendant went into default when they failed to make a required payment. On March 26, 2007, plaintiffs and defendant entered into a written forbearance agreement, in which defendant agreed to temporarily forbear from pursuing collection and plaintiffs agreed to make specified payments and provide additional security for the debt. The written agreement provided that defendant would forbear from collection until July 1, 2007, and plaintiffs would pledge as additional collateral certain real property, which included plaintiffs' residence and a truck yard. Plaintiffs failed to make the payments required by the March 26, 2007, agreement and defendant recorded a notice of default. Plaintiffs subsequently repaid the loan.
On April 2, 2008, plaintiffs filed their complaint, alleging causes of action including fraud, negligent misrepresentation, rescission, and reformation. They alleged that, two weeks prior to their execution of the written forbearance agreement, defendant's senior vice-president, David Ylarregui, met with them and represented defendant would agree to forbear from collection for
two years if plaintiffs would pledge two orchards as additional security. On March 26, 2007, at the time of execution of the written agreement, Ylarregui told plaintiffs the agreement would be for two years and would include as security only the two orchards, and not plaintiffs' residence or the truck yard. Plaintiffs alleged they did not read the written agreement, but relied on Ylarregui's representations of its terms in executing the written agreement. They alleged defendant's fraud and misrepresentation damaged plaintiffs' credit, and defendant's notice of foreclosure interfered with plaintiffs' ability to sell their real property. Defendant moved for summary judgment, asserting it was entitled to judgment on plaintiffs' first four causes of action because plaintiffs failed to perform in accordance with the written forbearance agreement, and they were barred by the parol evidence rule from presenting evidence of any prior or contemporaneous oral agreement that contradicted the terms of the written agreement. Plaintiffs opposed the motion, presenting evidence that, at the time of execution of the forbearance agreement, Ylarregui gave them the agreement to sign and stated that it contained a forbearance of two years and only included the two orchards as additional security. They asserted the fraud exception to the parol evidence rule applied, making the parol evidence of defendant's factual misrepresentations admissible. The trial court granted defendant's motion, concluding the parol evidence rule barred admission of evidence of an oral agreement that directly contradicted the terms of the written agreement, and therefore plaintiffs had failed to raise a triable issue of material fact to prevent entry of judgment in defendant's favor. Plaintiffs appeal.
1. The trial court found defendant was entitled to summary judgment on the other causes of action on other grounds, and the appeal does not challenge the disposition of those causes of action.
2. The basic rule is stated in Code of Civil Procedure section 1856, subdivision (a), as follows: "Terms set forth in a writing intended by the parties as a final expression of their agreement with respect to such terms as are included therein may not be contradicted by evidence of any prior agreement or of a contemporaneous oral agreement." Civil Code section 1625 provides: "The execution of a contract in writing, whether the law requires it to be written or not, supersedes all the negotiations or stipulations concerning its matter which preceded or accompanied the execution of the instrument."
3. The court reversed the judgment on causes of action alleging violation of the Consumers Legal Remedies Act (Civ. Code, § 1750 et seq.) and the unfair business practices law, finding they were not barred by the parol evidence rule. (Wang, supra, 97 Cal.App.4th at pp. 869-871.)