Chappell v. Roth

Judge Greene

dissenting.

The issue in this case is whether the parties had a settlement agreement or a contract that was enforceable. A contract is enforceable only if the parties “assent to the same thing in the same sense,” and their minds “meet as to all the terms.” MCB Ltd. v. McGowan, 86 N.C. App. 607, 608, 359 S.E.2d 50, 51 (1987) (citations omitted). “If any portion of the proposed terms is not settled, or no mode agreed on by which they may be settled, there is no agreement.” Id. at 608-09, 359 S.E.2d at 51.

In this case, defendants were agreeing to pay $20,000.00 in exchange for a “full and complete release, mutually agreeable to both parties.” The terms of the release were not agreed upon, and there was no method established to settle the terms of the release. Thus, there simply was no agreement to enforce and the trial court correctly denied plaintiff’s motion to enforce the alleged agreement. I, therefore, respectfully dissent.