US court rules contract written in blood not enforceable,

Californian judges have ruled that a contract written in blood is not legally enforceable. The ruling came in the case of a man who had gone to extreme lengths to reassure a friend he would reimburse money from bad investment.

But the Fourth District Court of Appeal in Santa Ana decided the blood contract between two Korean businessmen was unenforceable and gratuitous.

Jinsoo Kim sued Stephen Son to collect roughly $170,000 (£124,000) he lost when he invested in his friend's companies. Mr Kim lost his money when he invested in two firms involved in the manufacture and sale of boutique children's clothing.



In October 2004, the two men were out drinking at a Garden Grove sushi restaurant and karaoke bar when Son asked the waiter for a safety pin, pricked his finger and wrote the contract in blood in Korean characters.

The note, translated and quoted in the appellate court decision, read: "Sir, please forgive me. Because of my deeds you have suffered financially. I will repay you to the best of my ability."

Mr Kim filed a civil lawsuit more than a year later in Orange County Superior Court alleging his former business partner had committed fraud by defaulting on the note. Mr Son then claimed the money was never guaranteed and alleged that Mr Kim pressured him into writing the blood contract while he was intoxicated.