Accord and Satisfaction: When Payment Bars Further Recovery

A licensed insurance adjuster in Calgary, Alberta received a cheque in March 2024 from another adjuster handling the opposing interest in a subrogation matter valued at approximately $47,000. The cheque tendered $31,500. The receiving adjuster deposited the funds but now maintains that no agreement existed to treat the payment as full satisfaction of the claim, and that a balance of $15,500 remains owing.

The record does not disclose whether any written communication accompanied the cheque specifying it was tendered in full and final settlement, whether any restrictive endorsement appeared on the instrument itself, or whether the receiving adjuster communicated any objection or reservation before or after negotiating the funds. The question is whether the deposit constitutes accord and satisfaction under section 13(1) of Alberta's Judicature Act, extinguishing the claimed balance.

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