settle

To take up residence in a place. To arrange or put in order. To pay a bill or account. To adjust differences; to eliminate controversy. To make a determination. To establish title or estate in a person. When used with relation to pending litigation, the word has not acquired such a well defined meaning as would enable courts to interpret the intent of the parties in making use of it in connection with the ending of the litigation, without the aid of extrinsic evidence. Recourse must be had to the context of the agreement of the parties, to the circumstances under which the agreement was made, including the state and the various phases of the litigation referred to, and the conferences and correspondence between the parties pending the negotiation of the agreement. Setzer v Moore, 202 Cal 333, 260 P 550. A written agreement "to settle" is not equivalent to an agreement to pay. It is not a recognition of the debt claimed; it is an offer to adjust matters and may be rather a denial of any indebtedness. Parker v Carter, 91 Ark 162, 120 SW 836. When applied to a liquidated demand, "to settle" means to pay it. When applied to an unliquidated demand, the word means to effect a mutual adjust ment between the parties and to agree upon the balance. State v Staub, 61 Conn 553, 568.