When you run a business, contracts can be part of your everyday life. Whether you need to arrange employment contracts or want to make contracts with vendors, these are vital to your business’s processes.
There are times when you may create or sign a contract and wonder if it really can be enforced by law. If you have made the contract yourself and without the help of your attorney, your contract may not be viable, but it’s important to understand how business agreements work to make sure.
What makes a contract valid?
The most important thing to determine is if the agreement is, in fact, a contract. To be a valid contract, there has to be an offer made and an offer accepted. You must be bargaining in some way, whether it’s for money, time, effort, or resources. The terms of the contract should be defined and sufficient enough to be enforced in the case that one party does not follow through.
Can a court enforce a contract that has already been formed?
If a contract exists, then the court will need to determine if it can be, or should be, enforced. If the court finds that the contract is unfair or that the person who formed the contract didn’t have the legal capacity to do so, it could be unenforceable. The same is true if the person signed under duress or formed a contract with unfair terms. In the case that a contract can be enforced, the court can enforce it and order the other party to comply or deal with a penalty to get out of the contract.
Source: FindLaw, “Will Your Contract Be Enforced Under the Law?,” accessed May 11, 2016
