No. 23836. September 9, 1925

MAIN TOPIC – Contracts – Interpretation Of Documents

FACTS

The plaintiff applied to the defendant for a foreign credit to enable him to purchase coal in  Sydney, Australia, to be shipped to Manila. In connection therewith, plaintiff signed a written  “request for foreign credit” for the sum of 5,050.00 pounds, payable to the order of the bank of  New South Wales. It appears that in addition to the ¼ of one per cent commission specified in  the contract, that the defendant charged the plaintiff interest at the rate of 9 per cent per annum  on the amount of each of said drafts. It is admitted that such charge was made by the defendant  bank without the authority or knowledge of the Australian bank. Plaintiff not only paid the full  amount of the drafts drawn by the Australian bank, but he also paid the 9 per cent interest  charges which the defendant made where he did not know or understand the nature of them or  for whose benefit the charges were made. The plaintiff alleges that through an error, paid to  defendant interest and no part of such money paid has been returned or refunded by the  defendant. For answer the defendant denied the allegations and sought to prove that there was  an established usage and custom of the banks in Manila in like cases of charging and collecting  such interest from the time the draft is paid here, until the money is remitted by the local bank,  in the ordinary course of business, to the London bank.