Sir John Beaumont.-

This is an appeal from the judgment of the Supreme Court of Palestine sitting as a Court of appeal dated 30-11-1943, reversing the judgment of the District Court of Tel Aviv dated 30-6-1943, and ordering judgment to be entered for the respondent for L.P. 500 with cost.

[2] In the year 1940, the appellants wished to acquire the majority of the shares in a company called Abir Company Ltd. The respondent was one of the share-holders in that company, and the appellants thought that he could influence other share-holders. Accordingly an agreement was entered into between the appellants and the respondent, the terms of which are to be found in a letter from the appellants to their solicitor, Dr. Ishayevitz, which was admittedly shown to the respondent. The letter is Ex. D-2, and contained the following provision :

"We hereby instruct you in your capacity as our advocate to communicate to Mr. Levi Geffen on our behalf that after we shall have procured the majority of shares in the Abir Company Ltd., either in our name or in the name of a trustee on our behalf, we shall pay him an amount of L. P. 250 for his help in procuring the majority of these shares."

After some other provisions not now material to be stated, the letter continued : "We shall pay him a further amount of L. P. 250 after completion of all the matters between ourselves and the Cohenstak Brothers who are the owners of the remaining shares in the above company." It is not now in dispute that the amount which became payable under this letter was L.P.500.

[3] On 7-11-1941, a memorandum of agreement, which is Ex. D-1, was entered into between the parties whereby the appellants agreed to pay the respondent L.P. 201 for his shares in the Abir Company Ltd., and the respondent agreed to perform various services in connection with such company and the transfer of its shares to the appellants.

[4] On 28-11-1941, Dr. Ishayevitz on behalf of the appellants paid to the respondent by cheque the sum of L.P.1000, and the respondent signed a document (the draft of which had been prepared by Dr. Ishayevitz), described as an agreement between himself and the appellants, which is Ex. D-6. In that document the parties confirm that the agreement was in addition to the agreement signed by the parties on 7-11-1941 and that the consideration seated in such last mentioned agreement was a merely formal consideration, and the agreement now being stated then contained the following paragraph :

"The parties hereby confirm that the true consideration for the aforesaid shares and for all the other undertakings of Geffen in the said agreement of 7-11-1941, is L.P. 1000 and Egged shall pay this amount by cheque to the order of Geffen drawn on the Anglo-Palestine Bank, Tel Aviv No. 57353 12951 and Geffen hereby confirms the receipt of this cheque."

[5] On the same date, i.e., 28-11-1941, but after the interview at which the cheque was handed over, the respondent wrote to Dr. Ishayevitz a letter, which is Ex. p-2. The letter was headed "without prejudice", but it was given in evidence by the respondent without objection and he was cross-examined upon it. The said letter contained 3 paras, which are material :

"(1) My rights in Abir Ltd. are 10 per cent. of the value and selling price of the whole business. Therefore I have to receive from Egged 10 per cent. of the sum paid for Abir. Compared to the sum which for example Konstock family received (50 per cent.=L.P. 5600) that means a sum of L.P. 1120.

" (2) In addition to the above sum, there is due to me a further L.P. 500 the sum which you promised to pay me-you and Egged-and bound yourselves to pay in accordance with the letter of 15-3-1940, which was deposited with you as a trustee.

"(3) On the basis of all the promises and according to your request in the office of Dr. Bernard Joseph, Jerusalem, and out of complete confidence, I signed all documents which were handed to me for signature without any dispute or argument and without even examin