parol evidence rule
- noun
- /pəˈroʊl ˈɛvɪdəns ruːl/
- Formal
:
regla de prueba parol
- The judge explained that the parol evidence rule prohibits oral statements from changing the written terms of the agreement.
Examples
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The parol evidence rule is a substantive common law rule in contract cases that prevents a party to a written contract from presenting extrinsic evidence that contradicts or adds to the written terms of the contract that appears to be whole.
Blog text (19) -
Try raising the "parol evidence rule" with a non-lawyer contract manager.
Blog text (19) -
"Try raising the "parol evidence rule" with a non-lawyer contract manager.
Blog text (19) -
In court, the attorney argued that the parol evidence rule should be applied to uphold the contract as written.
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Understanding the parol evidence rule is essential for anyone involved in drafting or reviewing contracts.
Surface Forms
Morphology
The components 'parol' (spoken) + 'evidence' + 'rule' do signal that this is a rule concerning spoken evidence, so a learner who knows the constituent words can infer it's about oral testimony. However, the precise legal meaning — that such oral statements cannot be used to contradict, vary, or add to the terms of a written contract — is technical and not fully predictable from the parts, making the phrase only partially transparent.
Etymology
The phrase parol evidence rule comes from the old word parol, which meant 'spoken', and evidence, which meant 'proof'. The image is simple: only what is written on the contract counts, so what people say later cannot change it, which is why the rule means 'spoken statements cannot change a written contract'.
