Contracts Contracts)§ Definition!–!a!legally!enforceable!agreement!• Legally!enforceable!means!that!when!a!person!fails!to!live!up!to!the!agreement:!o The!injured!party!can!sue!the!other!party!for!breach!of!contract!• K!is!a!symbol!for!“contract”!in!any!legal!paperwork!• Contracts!are!a!small!subset!of!agreements,!NOT!all!agreements!are!contracts!o Not)every)agreement)is)legally)enforceable)§ Illegal!agreements!are!NOT!enforceable!!ú Ex.!a!student!was!caught!cheating!in!the!law!school!!• The!dean’s!office!was!aware!of!the!cheating!• The!student!hired!a!hit!man!to!kill!the!dean!• If!the!hit!man!had!finished!the!job!and!the!student!refused!to!pay:!o The!hit!man!would!not!be!able!to!sue!because!their!agreement!is!NOT!legal!ú Ex.!gambling!contracts!are!also!illegal!and!are!NOT!legally!enforceable!§ Social!agreements!are!NOT!legally!enforceable!ú Ex.!if!you!make!a!date!with!someone!and!don’t!show!up,!you!cannot!sue!them!ú This!is!because!we!want!to!prevent!an!avalanche!of!legal!cases!over!hurt!feelings!or!breach!of!etiquette!ú As!seen!in!the!following!examples,!sometimes!lines!are!blurred:!• A!young!girl!was!asked!to!prom!by!a!young!man!o She!went!out!and!bought!an!expensive!dress!and!shoes!and!had!appointments!for!pedicures,!hair,!etc.!made!o He!called!an!canceled!the!night!before!o This!case!went!to!court!and!eventually!settled!o This!wasn’t!just!a!social!agreement!because!there!was!money!spent!• Another!example!would!be!a!canceled!wedding!with!a!lot!of!expenses!o In!this!case,!this!would!be!considered!a!business!agreement!in!terms!of!the!relationship!with!the!vendors!§ Prenuptial)and)postnuptial)agreements)• Nuptial!refers!to!a!marriage!• In!blended!families!o You!have:!§ The!husband’s!kids!from!a!previous!marriage!§ The!wife’s!kids!from!a!previous!marriage!§ The!husband’s!and!wife’s!kids!from!the!current!marriage!o A!prenuptial!agreement!would!address!the!needs!of!each!these!different!groups!• Wavered!spousal!rights!(surrendered!rights)!o In!Florida,!a!pre!or!postnuptial!agreement!must!be!a!formal!agreement!(def.!on!the!test)!§ In!writing!§ Signed!§ Two!witnesses!o Rights!can!be!waved!to!property,!shares,!etc.!§ Meaning,!if!you!feel!like!your!futureTspouse!is!not!entitled!to!your!house!in!the!case!that!you!divorce,!this!can!be!stated!in!a!post!or!prenuptial!agreement!o The!law!does!not!require!you!to!disclose!your!full!financial!situation!to!your!spouse!before!committing!to!a!prenuptial!agreement!§ After!you!are!married,!you!must!make!a!fair!disclosure!of!your!assets!and!financial!situation!to!your!spouse!before!making!a!postnuptial!agreement!o Famous!prenuptial!agreements!§ Prince!William!and!Kate!Middleton!ú Prince!William!is!second!to!the!throne!of!Britain!ú PreTnups!are!common!in!the!US!but!not!in!Britain!ú Most!lawyers!recommend!that!William!and!Kate!get!a!prenup!§ Catherine!zeta!Jones!and!Michael!Douglas!ú Catherine!gets!1.5!million!dollars!for!every!year!they!are!together!!ú Catherine!also!gets!money!if!she!catches!him!cheating!ú Michael!gets!all!wedding!gifts!worth!more!than!$20,000!and!his!privacy!about!the!relationship!§ Essentials)of)a)contract)• Agreement!–!manifestation!of!mutual!assent!(consent)!o Both!parties!show!that!they!agree!on!the!same!terms!on!the!same!issues!§ This!agreement!can!be!shown!orally!or!in!a!written!format!o The!objective!theory!of!contracts!“Meeting!of!the!Minds”!§ This!theory!basically!says!that!both!parties’!minds!must!agree!to!the!same!terms!ú However,!we!cannot!read!minds,!so!the!court!only!interprets!what!is!written!§ Ex.!someone!is!selling!a!horse!and!sends!a!letter!to!the!buyer!ú The!letter!states!that!he!will!sell!the!horse!for!$2,200!ú The!buyer!likes!the!offer!and!returns!a!letter!accepting!terms!and!attaches!a!check!for!$2,200!ú The!buyer!wrote!$2,200!but!meant!to!write!$2,500!ú The!buyer!sues!seller!for!breach!of!contract!ú The!seller!says!the!didn’t!have!a!“meeting!of!the!minds”!and!therefore!don’t!have!a!contract!ú If!this!were!to!go!to!court,!the!court!can!only!base!this!on!what!was!objectively!manifested!• In!this!case,!what!was!written!in!the!letter!because!we!cannot!read!minds!or!hearts!and!the!$2,200!sale!is!a!contract!• Obligation!–!legal!duty!o A!contract!must!have!a!legal!commitment!§ Ex.!social!or!illegal!provisions!do!not!constitute!a!legal!commitment!§ Types)of)contracts)• Express)Contract!–!agreement!manifested!in!words!(oral!or!written)!o Ex.!agreeing!verbally!to!pay!your!friend!$400/month!to!stay!at!their!apartment!• Implied!Contract)–!agreement!manifested!by!conduct!o Ex.!at!a!dental!appointment:!§ The!dentist!finds!a!patient’s!cavity!during!the!appointment!§ The!patient!agrees!to!have!it!filled!but!did!not!ask!the!price!§ The!patient!was!asked!to!pay!$500!!ú The!patient!refused!and!argues!that!he!didn’t!make!a!contract!ú Therefore,!according!to!the!patient,!he!is!not!responsible!for!payment!§ The!dentist!argues!that!there!is!an!implied!contract!made!because!even!though!the!fees!weren’t!discussed,!the!patient!agreed!to!have!the!services!performed!ú Therefore,!the!patient!is!responsible!for!payment!§ Rule:!in!an!implied!contract,!all!the!terms!of!the!contract!are!impliedly!reasonable!ú This!means!that!the!jury!would!decide!what!is!reasonable!ú Surveys!of!multiple!dentists!of!what!a!reasonable!fee!would!be!for!filling!a!cavity,!would!help!the!jury!decide!if!the!$500!fee!is!reasonable.!!• Unilateral)Contract!–!promise!for!an!act!o Ex.!!A!reward!contract!§ I!promise!to!pay!you!$100!if!you!find!my!dog!§ This!is!different!from!a!bilateral!contract!because!it!is!not!promising!you!pay!for!looking!for!the!dog!ú It!is!only!promising!to!pay!for!the!act!of!finding!the!dog!ú Meaning,!you!can!spend!days!looking!for!the!dog!and!not!receive!a!penny!o Another!ex.!Realtor!contracts!§ Realtors!only!get!paid!if!the!sell!the!house!• Bilateral)Contracts!–!a!promise!for!a!promise!o Most!contacts!are!bilateral!§ Ex.!Employee!and!sales!contracts!are!usually!bilateral!ú As!an!employee,!you!promise!to!perform!work!tasks!in!exchange!for!the!promise!to!receive!cash!compensation!• Executory)Contracts!–!not!yet!performed!o
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