Hatley v. Stafford
Supreme Court of Oregon
588 P.2d 603 (Or. 1978)
Stafford Farms (defendant) leased land to Mike Hatley (plaintiff) to grow wheat, with a handwritten buyout provision letting Stafford repurchase Hatley's interest for up to $70 per acre. About seven months in, Stafford invoked the buyout and harvested wheat then worth $400 per acre. Hatley sued for trespass, arguing the parties had orally agreed the buyout option was only exercisable within 30 to 60 days of signing — a limitation absent from the handwritten lease. Stafford objected under the parol evidence rule, but the trial court admitted the oral term under the partial-integration doctrine.
Whether, in a contract with a buyout provision but no stated duration for it, evidence of an oral agreement limiting the provision's duration is admissible.