Richey v. Leighton

The defendant, R. Stephen Leighton, appeals the Superior Court’s (O’Neil, J.) award of $11,000 in damages to the plaintiffs, Frances Richey and Christine C. Yegen. We hold that the trial court erred in using parol evidence to contradict clear and unambiguous contract terms and, therefore, reverse.

In May 1990, the plaintiffs, owners of an approximately one-hundred acre undeveloped tract of land in Nottingham, contracted with Leighton for the cutting of timber on a per-thousand-foot basis. Leighton was a logger of six years experience. He suggested the per-foot basis of the contract and…