Phillips Petroleum Company, Petitioner v. Stahl Petroleum Company, Respondent

Summary

The Texas Supreme Court affirmed the Court of Civil Appeals, holding that Phillips Petroleum Company must pay statutory interest on delayed payments to Stahl Petroleum Company and that prejudgment interest on the accrued interest is proper. The Court reasoned that the contract’s plain terms created a determinable sum payable each month, triggering the interest statute, and that equity permits interest even absent a specific contractual or statutory provision. Justice Pope filed a concurring opinion agreeing with the result but noting the equitable interest analysis was unnecessary. Justice Pope, concurring, would have reached the same holding.