"A contract is an agreement that specifies certain legally enforceable rights and obligations pertaining to two or more mutually agreeing parties."
Legal contracts and agreements that businesses need to enter into with customers, suppliers, and partners, including purchase agreements, non-disclosure agreements, employment contracts, and lease agreements.
Offer and Acceptance: The process by which one party makes an offer to another, who then accepts or rejects it, forming the basis of a contract.
Consideration: The exchange of something of value between parties as part of the contract.
Capacity: The legal ability of parties to enter into a contract.
Legality: The requirement that contracts be within the bounds of the law and public policy.
Writing: The requirement that some contracts be in writing to be valid.
Performance: The requirement that parties fulfill their contractual obligations.
Breach of Contract: The failure of one party to fulfill their contractual obligations.
Remedies: The legal means of enforcing a contract or addressing a breach.
Third-Party Beneficiaries: Individuals or entities that are not parties to the contract, but who may benefit from it.
Contract Interpretation: The process of establishing the meaning and intent of contract language.
Dispute Resolution: The means of resolving disagreements over contracts, including mediation, arbitration, or litigation.
International Contracts: The unique considerations that arise when dealing with contracts and agreements across borders.
Government Contracts: The special requirements and regulations that apply to contracts with governmental entities.
Intellectual Property: The ownership and protection of ideas and creations, including patents, trademarks, and copyrights, which may be addressed in contracts.
Non-Disclosure Agreements: Agreements that establish confidentiality regarding trade secrets, intellectual property, and confidential business information.
Employment Contracts: Agreements between employers and employees (such as non-compete agreements), which establish terms of employment.
Lease Agreements: A contract that sets the terms and conditions for renting property.
Partnership Agreements: Agreements that establish the terms and conditions of a business partnership.
Sales Contracts: Agreements that establish the terms and conditions for the sale of goods or services.
Franchise Agreements: Agreements that establish the terms and conditions for operating a franchise.
Sales Contracts: A sales contract is a legally binding agreement between two parties: The seller and the buyer - specifying the terms and conditions under which a product or service is being sold.
Service Contracts: A service contract is a legally binding agreement between a service provider and a client, outlining the terms and conditions of the services to be rendered.
Employment Contracts: An employment contract is a legally binding agreement between an employer and an employee, outlining the terms and conditions of the employment relationship, including compensation, duration, duties, and benefits.
Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDA): An NDA is a legally binding agreement that prevents one or both parties from disclosing confidential information to third parties without the other party's consent.
Lease Agreements: A lease agreement is a legally binding contract between a landlord and a tenant, outlining the terms and conditions of renting a property, including rent, security deposit, occupancy period, and maintenance responsibilities.
Partnership Agreements: A partnership agreement is a legally binding contract between two or more individuals or entities forming a partnership, outlining the terms and conditions of the partnership relationship.
Joint Venture Agreements: A joint venture agreement is a legally binding contract between two or more entities engaged in a specific business venture, outlining the terms and conditions of the joint venture relationship.
Franchise Agreements: A franchise agreement is a legally binding contract between a franchisor and a franchisee, outlining the terms and conditions of operating a franchise business.
License Agreements: A license agreement is a legally binding contract between a licensor and a licensee, outlining the terms and conditions of licensing intellectual property, including patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets.
Operating Agreements: An operating agreement is a legally binding contract between members of a limited liability company (LLC), outlining the terms and conditions of the LLC's operations and management.
Memorandum of Understanding (MoU): An MoU is a legally non-binding agreement between two or more parties outlining the basic terms and conditions of a proposed agreement or transaction.
Purchase Agreements: A purchase agreement is a legally binding contract between a buyer and a seller, outlining the terms and conditions of buying a specific product or service.
Subscription Agreements: A subscription agreement is a legally binding contract between an issuer and a subscriber, outlining the terms and conditions of subscribing to a security, such as stocks or bonds.
Assignment Agreements: An assignment agreement is a legally binding agreement between a party assigning certain rights or obligations to another party.
Independent Contractor Agreements: An independent contractor agreement is a legally binding contract between an independent contractor and a client, outlining the terms and conditions of the services to be provided.
"A contract typically involves the transfer of goods, services, money, or a promise to transfer any of those at a future date."
"In the event of a breach of contract, the injured party may seek judicial remedies such as damages or rescission."
"A binding agreement between actors in international law is known as a treaty."
"Contract law, the field of the law of obligations concerned with contracts, is based on the principle that agreements must be honored."
"Like other areas of private law, contract law varies between jurisdictions."
"Common law jurisdictions typically require contracts to include consideration in order to be valid."
"Civil and most mixed-law jurisdictions solely require a meeting of the minds between the parties."
"The German tradition is characterized by the unique doctrine of abstraction."
"Systems based on the Napoleonic Code are characterized by their systematic distinction between different types of contracts."
"Roman-Dutch law is largely based on the writings of renaissance-era Dutch jurists and case law applying general principles of Roman law prior to the Netherlands' adoption of the Napoleonic Code."
"The UNIDROIT Principles of International Commercial Contracts ... aim to provide a general harmonized framework for international contracts, independent of the divergences between national laws."
"The Principles reject the doctrine of consideration."
"The Principles also rejected the abstraction principle on the grounds that it and similar doctrines are 'not easily compatible with modern business perceptions and practice'."
"Tort law (also referred to in some jurisdictions as the law of delicts) is the other major area of the law of obligations."
"While tort law generally deals with private duties and obligations that exist by operation of law, and provide remedies for civil wrongs committed between individuals not in a pre-existing legal relationship, contract law provides for the creation and enforcement of duties and obligations through a prior agreement between parties."
"The emergence of quasi-contracts, quasi-torts, and quasi-delicts renders the boundary between tort and contract law somewhat uncertain."