“Abandonment of a contract is a mutual election of all contracting parties to cease further performance and terminate their rights under the contract. The law governing abandonment is codified as mutual rescission. Section 1689[a] of the Civil Code provides: “A contract may be rescinded if all the parties thereto consent.” The California cases frequently use the terms “mutual rescission” and “abandonment” interchangeably; the terms “cancellation,” “abrogation” and “termination” are also sometimes used. As compared with “mutual rescission,” the term “rescission” generally implies a restoration of the parties to their former position prior to the contract, a concept that is not implicit in abandonment.”
[California Affirmative Defenses [certain citations omitted]]
