Any type of business agreement should involve a contract. But, when contracts are not properly written and disputes arise, those contracts may not hold up in court. It is best to have a business attorney draft all contracts, whether they are agreements or for employment. It’s also important to understand what makes a contract enforceable.
Agreements and Contracts Aren’t Always the Same
A court will look at your document to determine whether or not it is enforceable. Most importantly, they will want to determine if the agreement is a contract. To be a contract, there are specific requirements it must meet. One being that a party must extend an offer and the other party accepts that offer in the agreement. There must also be a bargain or exchange in promises, whether it is monetary, service, products, etc. Also, the terms must specify that they will use the court to enforce those terms.
Enforcement and Fighting Breach Defenses
Once the court has decided your agreement is a contract, they will then decide if it should be enforced. There are plenty of reasons a judge will decide not to enforce a contract. These decisions are designed to protect people from entering into unfair contracts.
If the contract was overbearing, unfair or the party signs the contract without adequate capacity, then the court may choose to not enforce it, regardless if it is a legal contract or not.
Contract Breach Defenses
If the other party breaches your contract, then they may have a valid defense for doing so. Any type of threat, coercion or false statement made to the other party can be grounds for a legally acceptable breach. The courts look at business contracts carefully as well as the situation in which they were signed to determine whether or not the other party had a right to breach. The court will likely look for:
- If the party signed under duress, meaning that they were threatened with serious actions unless they entered into the agreement.
- Undue influence – the person was persuaded to sign into an unfair transaction due to the other person’s relationship to the signer.
- One party misrepresented the facts, such as not disclosing information they had a legal duty to disclose.
Want an Enforceable Contract? Hire a Business Attorney
To ensure you have an enforceable contract, you should have your business attorney handle all agreements. An attorney will not only draft the contract in accordance with the law, but can protect you from any potential breach defenses by being witness to contract signings.
Contact Miami business attorney at Campbell Law Group today or call 305-460-0145 for a no obligation consultation regarding your business contracts and let us help you protect your most valuable asset.