Robert G. Watkins & Son, Inc. v. Carrig

When the written contract was entered into, no understanding existed between the parties that no rock would be found in the excavating. The plaintiff’s manager made no inquiry or investigation to find out the character of the ground below the surface, no claim is made that the defendant misled him, and the contract contains no reservations for unexpected conditions. It provides that “all material” shall be removed from the site, and its term that the plaintiff is “to excavate” is unqualified. In this situation a defence of mutual mistake is not available. A space of ground to be excavated,…