Unwritten arrangements and oral contracts are usually legal and lawfully binding on the condition that they are rational, unbiased, conscionable, and made in upright belief. Even though the major part of individuals links contracts with authorized documents reproduced on paper with a determination of delivering them to legal officials to sign and imprint them, the thing is that only a small number of categories of contracts are obligated by the law to be written (Penner, 2014). The cause why spoken contracts and oral arrangements are repeatedly looked suspiciously upon is that they have a tendency to arise complications when it comes to the implementation. Contracts that are plainly inscribed and implemented are easier to present as evidence in law court than the testament of the pledged parties. It is as well stimulating to dismiss contract flaws when they are not written. When verbal contracts are reviewed in court, there is constantly a risk of one of the sides being dishonest about the footings of the contract (Williston, Currier, & Hill, 2012). Sometimes, all sides of the contract may select to be deceitful about the terms of the bond and thus produce a lawful stalemate for the judges.
In the case described, the contract is an arrangement between the two parties to deliver a product (car in this example) that is totally lawful. There are fundamentally six basics of a contract that make it lawful and binding (Penner, 2014). The contract reviewed in the example is a lawful contract for the reason that there are present all six elements:
- A proposal that precisely details what will be provided and is comprehended by both sides of the contract (Williston et al., 2012). The salesperson provided Jim and Laura with all the necessary information about the car that they were about to buy.
- Mutual agreement, which is the acceptance of the proposal offered by the other party (Williston et al., 2012). When Jim and Laura picked the car that they liked, they decided to buy it the next day, and the salesperson agreed to hold the car for a day.
- Something of interest or monetary value is exchanged by the parties in order to come to an agreement (Williston et al., 2012). In this case, Jim and Laura gave the salesperson a $100 deposit. An important note would be that the salesperson and the customers agreed to the terms that this deposit is refundable.
- Adequacy of the parties partaking in the contract in terms of intellectual capacity (Williston et al., 2012). This point is also reflected in the example as both parties proved they were sane when agreeing to the terms of the contract. Both customer and the salesperson realized the importance of the pledge and the responsibility it comes with.
- The determination of both sides to keep their promise and be fair to each other (Williston et al., 2012). The salesperson promised Jim and Laura that it is not a problem if they come back on the next day to buy the car, and the customers promised the salesperson to purchase the car on the next day.
- Legal standings and circumstances, also known as the object of the agreement (Williston et al., 2012). The fact of the car purchase is legal, and both parties agreed on the terms that are in compliance with the law. The case demonstrated that both parties behaved like law-abiding citizens.
To state otherwise, an agreement is applicable and lawful for the reason that both parties agreed to the terms, sealed the promise with a $100 deposit, both were in the acceptable mental and physical condition and pledged to keep their promise and what they swore to do was in compliance with the law. Even though generally a contract is printed and signed by the sides, it was one of some other types of bonds that are well-thought-out to be implemented lawfully (Penner, 2014). Despite the fact that the verbal agreement reached in the case might assist the court only in defining the responsibilities on the side of either party, it still functions in a similar way.
To conclude, it is obvious that, in this case, the customers and the salesperson came to an agreement that can be called a verbal contract. All six basic elements of a proper contract are also present, so it is reasonable to assume that the dealer breached the contract and rejected the previous set terms. Nevertheless, a tailback may arise in the court regarding the fact that Jim and Laura promised to buy the car but changed their mind. On the other hand, the salesperson negotiated that the deposit is refundable but failed to return it the other day when the customers came back to the car dealership to explain the situation. The case described is a definitive representation of a contract law case. All the probable inaccuracies and misunderstandings should have been specified in advance in order to evade litigation and satisfy both parties.
References
Penner, J. E. (2014). The Law of Trusts. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Williston, S., Currier, R., & Hill, R. (2012). Commercial Law. New York, NY: American Institute of Banking.