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This post exemplifies why you don't take legal advice from strangers on the internet.

by parfe 12y ago

balls187 12y ago
Is there case law that shows verbal acceptance of contracts are legally binding?
- bduerst 12y ago
  Email and Oral acceptance of terms can be legally binding in contractual agreements. You don't need to dig up a civil court case to know that verbally accepting a contract without intending to fulfill it is naive and potentially dangerous.
  - balls187 12y ago
    > Email and Oral acceptance of terms can be legally binding in contractual agreements. It looks like (from basic research) that verbal acceptance IS legally binding (in the US anyway). The trouble with verbal agreements is they can be problematic to enforce.
    - eru 12y ago
      Not so much enforce, but it's often hard to prove the details.
- jacalata 12y ago
  yes, I found this by googling "case law breach verbal contract": http://lepinelaw.com/wordpress/2013/02/06/winning-oral-contract-cases/ http://lepinelaw.com/wordpress/2013/02/06/winning-oral-contr...
- teachingaway 12y ago
  Yes. There's lots of caselaw that says verbal contracts are legally binding. But verbal contracts are a legal clusterf#¢&. Always always get your contracts signed in writing and you will save tons of $$$$ on lawyer fees.
- larrys 12y ago
  Legally binding (if so) is not the same as something will actually happen. It's an important distinction. Don't confuse what the laws says can happen with what will happen. Look people don't need much of a leg to stand on if they want to sue if the pot of gold is big enough. But at least, in my experience, people are usually hard pressed to sue over verbal contracts or for that matter obviously even many written and executed contracts. Keep in mind that the advice that many lawyers will give you is going to generally steer away from telling you to take chances lest you then go and pin the blame on him when you are the edge case.

This post exemplifies why you don't take legal advice from strangers on the internet.

by parfe 12y ago

This post exemplifies why you don't take legal advice from strangers on the internet.

balls187 12y ago

Is there case law that shows verbal acceptance of contracts are legally binding?

bduerst 12y ago
Email and Oral acceptance of terms can be legally binding in contractual agreements. You don't need to dig up a civil court case to know that verbally accepting a contract without intending to fulfill it is naive and potentially dangerous.
- balls187 12y ago
  > Email and Oral acceptance of terms can be legally binding in contractual agreements. It looks like (from basic research) that verbal acceptance IS legally binding (in the US anyway). The trouble with verbal agreements is they can be problematic to enforce.
  - eru 12y ago
    Not so much enforce, but it's often hard to prove the details.
jacalata 12y ago
yes, I found this by googling "case law breach verbal contract": http://lepinelaw.com/wordpress/2013/02/06/winning-oral-contract-cases/ http://lepinelaw.com/wordpress/2013/02/06/winning-oral-contr...
teachingaway 12y ago
Yes. There's lots of caselaw that says verbal contracts are legally binding. But verbal contracts are a legal clusterf#¢&. Always always get your contracts signed in writing and you will save tons of $$$$ on lawyer fees.
larrys 12y ago
Legally binding (if so) is not the same as something will actually happen. It's an important distinction. Don't confuse what the laws says can happen with what will happen. Look people don't need much of a leg to stand on if they want to sue if the pot of gold is big enough. But at least, in my experience, people are usually hard pressed to sue over verbal contracts or for that matter obviously even many written and executed contracts. Keep in mind that the advice that many lawyers will give you is going to generally steer away from telling you to take chances lest you then go and pin the blame on him when you are the edge case.