What is the effect of section 997 of the California Code of Civil Procedure on an individual who has not yet accepted an offer from a third party?

Furthermore, the theory of section 997 is that the process of settlement and compromise is a contractual one, and the applicable principles are those relating to contracts in general (11 Cal.Jur.2d, 2, p. 3). The trial court's reasoning here is in accord with the general rules on offers--any new offer communicated prior to a valid acceptance of a previous offer, extinguishes and replaces the prior one (Long v. Chronicle Pub. Co., 68 Cal.App. 171, 228 P. 873).