Opinion ID: 222490
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Implied Contract to Waive Interest

Text: The third unwritten contract purportedly governing Dynegy and Multiut's relationship grew out of Dynegy's failure to invoice Multiut for interest during most of 1999 and 2000. Multiut and Draiman contend that through this conduct, Dynegy impliedly agreed to forgo the collection of interest, notwithstanding its subsequent submission to Multiut of corrected interest invoices and supporting schedules. The district court granted summary judgment for Dynegy after finding that Multiut and Draiman failed to demonstrate that any such agreement existed. We agree that summary judgment was proper. Contracts implied in fact arise under circumstances which, according to the ordinary course of dealing and the common understanding of men, show a mutual intention to contract. Mowatt v. City of Chicago, 292 Ill. 578, 127 N.E. 176, 177 (1920); see also Schivarelli v. Chi. Transit Auth., 355 Ill.App.3d 93, 291 Ill.Dec. 148, 823 N.E.2d 158, 165-66 (2005) (In a contract implied in fact, a contractual duty is imposed by reason of a promissory expression inferred from facts, circumstances and expressions by the promisor showing an intent to be bound. Such contract may be proved by circumstances showing that the parties intended to contract and by the general course of dealing between them. (citation omitted)). No such intention can be reasonably inferred from the evidence presented here. Despite its failure to invoice interest for many months, Dynegy sought to rectify its mistake by sending Multiut a letter and updated invoices as soon as it discovered the omission. (The parties' written agreement contained a provision allowing the parties up to 24 months to correct any billing errors.) It also invoiced Multiut for interest consistently both before and after the 1999-2000 period. These are not the actions of a party seeking to be bound. Moreover, and perhaps more damaging to this claim, Multiut met with Dynegy in March 2001 and agreed that it owed the amount Dynegy claimed it did; the agreed-upon amount included the interest Multiut now claims is waived. Perhaps Multiut hoped that Dynegy would overlook some of the interest it was accruing, but Dynegy's actions do not objectively indicate that it had any such intention.