Mitchell v. Pacific First Bank

I believe defendant was entitled to a directed verdict on plaintiffs’ breach of contract claim. In its effort to uphold an untenable jury verdict, the majority opinion ignores pertinent cases and basic principles of contract law. It upholds the verdict with a theory of recovery that was never asserted by the plaintiffs. It also permits plaintiffs to transform equitable estoppel into a cause of action for money damages. The opinion has potential to mislead bench and bar.

Plaintiffs proceeded to trial on the theory that the bank agreed to an oral modification of the loan agreement and that the…