Contracts Are Seatbelts
You can drive your car, albeit illegally, without a seatbelt. For nearly 100 years, people drove or rode in a car this way. Seatbelts are only needed in case of an accident. This is when they provide protection. Contracts are the same. You can run your business without a contract. But when something happens, it’s the contract that protects you.
We can create those protective contracts.
A Contract: an Offer, an Acceptance, and Consideration
An Offer is…
A promise to perform or refrain from some action. An Offer remains open until it is accepted, rejected, retracted, or has expired. When the other party provides a counter-offer, the original offer terminates.
An Acceptance is…
A response to an Offer that fully accepts the conditions presented by the Offeror (the person making the Offer). It shows that the Offeree (the person to whom the Offer is directed) intends to be part of the contract. An Acceptance can be as simple as “Yes,” or “I accept.” It may even be a nod.
Consideration is…
Something of value given to the Offeree in return for Acceptance of the Offer. It is described as a legal benefit received by one person and a legal detriment imposed on the other person. Consideration commonly exchanged is money, property, or services.
Did You Know
- An Implied Contract is a form of an enforceable contract; it is based on a tacit promise, one that is inferred in whole or in part from the parties’ conduct, not solely from their words.
- A Third Party Contract requires the parties clearly express, or the contract itself expresses, an intent to primarily and directly benefit the third party or a class of persons to which that party claims to belong.
You may have a cause of action for a Breach of Contract if the following are true:
1. the existence of a contract;
2. a breach of the contract; and
3. damages resulting from the breach.
Statute of Limitations
Fla. Stat. §95.11(2)(b)(five years for written contract);
Fla. Stat. §95.11(3)(k)(four years for oral contract).
You may have a cause of action for Tortious Interference with a Contract if someone interferes with a contract between you and someone else and induces them to breach the contract.
If you have questions about a contract issue, email us or call us.
Location
15438 N. Florida Ave. Suite 120
Tampa, FL 33613
Mailing Address
23110 State Road 54, #157
Lutz, FL 33549