Question juridique clé
Whether the lower court could deduct CHF 290,000 as a payment credited to the damages claim.
Solution extraite
Yes. The appellants' own procedural statements had to be understood as acknowledging that the amounts were paid on account of their claim with liberating effect for the respondent, so the sum was properly deducted from the awarded damages.
Motifs extraits
The statements were clear that the payments were made 'on account of the plaintiffs' claim' and that the claim was reduced accordingly. The court therefore did not need to clarify who had actually paid or under what circumstances. No violation of good faith, arbitrariness, or hearing rights was shown.