Although California courts have not yet weighed in on the issue, “federal courts applying California law have concluded that monthly credit card statements may form the basis for an account stated,” notwithstanding the existence of a written cardholder agreement. (Lauron, supra, 8 Cal.
An Account Stated establishes an implied contract, whereas a breach of contract traditionally refers to an expressly written contract. Account Stated is used when no contract exists or when the plaintiff cannot prove the existence of the contract.
Under California case law, an account stated is “an agreement, based on prior transactions between the parties, that the items of an account are true and that the balance struck is due and owing.” See Maggio, Inc. v. Neal, 196 Cal.
Essentially, an account stated is a new contract under which the parties to prior transactions agree to a new balance due. 6. Thus, a claim for an account stated is based not on the original transactions between the parties, but on the new, agreed upon contractual balance.