Questions tagged [contract-law]
For questions about laws related to contracts, an agreement between two or more parties.
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If a company agrees to pay travel cost for a job interview, is the promise binding and enforceable?
There is a question on workplace.SE about a company which offered to pay travel costs for a job interview, but canceled the return ticket after ending the interview - Potential Employer Cancels Return ...
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Can I sign legal documents with a smiley face?
The signature on my driver's license is a unique and identifiable smiley face :-)
I use this signature to sign all legally binding documents. A lot of the time, people reject it, and request an &...
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Why do lawyers write contracts with language that is more difficult to understand than other works?
The recent Ig Nobel Prize Winning work "Poor writing, not specialized concepts, drives processing difficulty in legal language" by Martínez, Mollica, and Gibson demonstrates that contracts ...
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After buying from a brick & mortar shop they've contacted me to say buying things from them is consent to arbitration. Is this legal?
A few days ago I bought over-the-counter goods from a shop. There was no signature involved in this purchase. I walked up to the counter with off-the-shelf items, was asked for a phone number, paid in ...
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Is it breach of contract if dismissed before starting work?
I've been dismissed by a company I was due to start a job with, just a few days before the job was meant to start. They have no intention of providing me with any compensation despite the fact I ...
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What's the problem with red ink?
I have repeatedly encountered lawyers who refuse to sign documents using red ink or accept documents that are signed in red ink.
No one has been able to articulate exactly why in my conversations, but ...
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Do Legal Documents Require Signing In Standard Pen Colors?
I have a question as to whether or not legal documents signed in non standard pen colors (Anything other than blue or black) are valid.
I carry a purple pen around that use for everyday writing tasks,...
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What law governs shopping carts?
The title may sound a bit funny but it is something I spent a few hours thinking about during a recent car trip :)
In my country in order to get a shopping cart, you have to insert a coin. When ...
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What's the difference between a share and a stock?
In my company constitution I found the following:
At any time, the directors may allot and issue unissued shares subject to clause 8, or grant options over
unissued shares, on any condition and ...
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How to prove I live in a specific address?
https://www.flhsmv.gov/ddl/address.html
I need to provide proof of address for the DMV, but the process can be difficult because:
I live with someone else; I do not pay rent/utilities; and they will ...
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Is it legal to lie about an illegal requirement?
As an example, its not legal to discriminate against a person of a certain race while renting out your house. So lets say an Asian person sees a house rented out with a "no Asians" condition....
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Does ripping up the only signed contract form invalidate it?
Suppose I sign a contract in front of witnesses, but then immediately tear it up.
Is the contract still binding?
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Can a significant change in incentives void an employment contract?
Recently over at The Workplace there was a question regarding an employee withholding valuable information that they developed in their spare time. According to their employment contract all ...
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What are some possible law suits or civil actions the Las Vegas shooting victims could take?
I assume that many, if not all of the businesses, corporations and individuals who were operating and supplying services at the time of the Las Vegas Strip shootings (Wikipedia) - such as hotels, ...
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Strange Clause in Employment Contract Concerning Leaving Job
My teenager has applied for a tutoring job at a local after-school tutoring center and there is the following clause in her employment contract:
If you decide to discontinue after your term is over, ...
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Can a car seller refuse to sell the car after the contract has been signed and the deposit has been paid?
My friend (buyer) tried to purchase a car from a private individual (seller). They agreed on a price, drew up a contract, and signed it. The buyer paid the seller the deposit they agreed on.
The ...
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Would a contract to pay a trillion dollars in damages be valid?
Let's say you write a contract with someone, and you want to make sure they don't breach it. You could just have them covenant certain things, but then they'd only be liable for whatever damages you ...
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If a contract sometimes uses the wrong name, is it still valid?
I was given a contract, which at the top states my name and says "herein referred to as contractor" but in several sections of the body, it appears that there is a mistake where they use the word "...
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Is it legal to refuse an offer for real estate which is above the asking price, when there are no other offers by the published due date
A house in California is for sale with asking price of X .
A buyer engages with an agent and finds out in writing that offers will be accepted until a certain date.
A buyer submits a formal written ...
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What might be illegal about a company using deceptive phone calls to establish a contract and seeking payments under it?
I have recently been encountering an organisation whose mode of operation is to dupe members of venue staff into "agreeing" to have their venue advertised "online". Subsequently a bill arrives for ...
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Is there a law against signing a contract to do something illegal?
Inspired by this question over on workplace.SE - Severance contract requires a lie. Is this enforceable?
If you sign a contract wherein you agree to do something illegal, but have no intention of ...
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How to mitigate the risk of getting sued by clients (web dev contracting)
I'm a web dev and I'm thinking about becoming a contractor.
I feel a little uneasy about the possibility of someone potentially trying to sue me. If, for example, a client wants an e-commerce website ...
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Enforce contract on burglars
Lets say I post a sign outside my house reading "if you break into this house, you agree to paying the owner a one million dollars access fee". This would be similar to how parking lots post ...
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What is the legal basis for terminating contracts with Russian residents?
This question is not about politics, it's purely about law.
Recently, a number of companies announced that they will be terminating contracts with anyone who has Russian registration.
One example is ...
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Is customer entitled to the same car tested in the test drive or in the ad?
I know someone who went to purchase a brand new car from a dealer in the US. The customer came in with an internet ad and asked to test drive the car listed. After the test drive, she paid for it. But ...
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UK - Working without a contract. I resign and guy wants to sue me
I am a foreigner from overseas I just arrived in UK 3 months ago.
I have been working for a small startup in UK as CTO, my employer didn't want to give me an employment contract of any type, or ...
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Is a thumbs-up emoji considered as legally binding agreement in the United States?
I read that a thumbs-up emoji considered as legally binding agreement in Canada. Is a thumbs-up emoji considered as legally binding agreement in the United States?
If state-specific, I am mostly ...
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Is it common to cross out part of a contract in USA?
My wife is doing a master in New York and we have 2 weeks here, and we found an apartment but we are confused with the way they handle the contracts.
First they told us via email that pets are allowed ...
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Why is this contract worded like a client is talking to himself?
I'm looking at a sample contract for a graphic designer who is planning on doing freelance work. I don't understand why it says that the Client should obtain all copyright permissions for materials ...
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Is there a contract, or was this offer not accepted?
Mr E orders a cake for his wife's birthday at a bakery on his street. On the bakery's window, a sign is up that says, 'Today's special offer! Any customised cake for £50!' Mr E orders a customised ...
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May a person accept and keep bribes so long as they act lawfully?
This isn't a situation I'm in, but rather something I'm curious about.
If a private person (outside of any position of authority) is bribed to keep an illegal act they witnessed secret, but chooses ...
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Is it legal for someone to forge my signature with my knowledge and approval?
I recently had to sign some paperwork for a health insurance contract in Greece. I was in the UK at the time, so I had to have the thing mailed to me, sign it, and then mail it back. It occurred to me ...
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Is lying on a survey illegal?
If a survey is being done, either for scientific purposes or to collect information inside a workplace, is it legal to lie in it? For example if the workplace wants to know how many employees have ...
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What legal basis exists for challenging absurd (but technically-correct) invoices?
Every once in a while you hear stories about people getting hit with ridiculously high charges, such as for cell phone or cloud computing, e.g.:
In the cell phone case, this can happen when (for ...
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What is a contract and what is required for them to be valid?
What is a contract?
What elements are required for validity?
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Do schools have permission to use pictures containing my face taken inside school forever if I agreed to it?
On day one of my first year in high school me and basically every other students were given a few documents to sign. One of them included a clause that allowed the school to publish pictures of us ...
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Does how a court interpret a contract depend on whether it's a layman or expert who wrote the contract?
The title sort of says it all, I'm wondering if a contract would be read differently or more literally if written, or signed, by a trained lawyer then if it was done by layman.
So let's say that I ...
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Can employer legally stop paying time & 1/2 to exempt employee after stating in the offer that they would do so?
Late July I got a job as a computer programmer on a 6 month contract with the agency that recruited me (although I actually work for another company). The job is W-2, paid hourly, but as I'm a ...
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Are "anti-exclusive" contracts legal?
Is it legal to have an "anti-exclusive" contract?
By anti-exclusive, I mean a contract that says, for example:
"This software can be used on any platform EXCEPT for X"
For a real ...
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What are my options legally if NYC company is not paying salary?
UPDATE:
I was just let go today, May 8. After being let go, 2-3 hours later I was asked to sign a general release. Obviously I declined. I told them I cannot sign a general release as I have a claim ...
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When can an NDA be legally broken?
This question is purely theoretical, I promise.
Let's say a person signed a Non-Disclosure agreement under certain terms, and then, somehow, they witnessed an illegal act but were forbidden to report ...
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By selling a flagged solution to a student to catch them cheating, would the seller be liable for the breach of contract?
This is a follow up question to this HNQ question from academia.
Suppose a student S posts an assignment for school/university/... on a freelancer website. A faculty member F sees this and agrees to ...
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Is it considered a breach of confidentiality if data is uploaded to a website which only makes that data available to the uploader?
I'm a developer working at a company that handles sensitive banking information and recently, I've had troubles organising my code and thus posted it in a private repository on Github, which only I ...
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Are there no limits to damage waivers or would this go too far?
I am going to make vacation on Hawaii next week. For one day we booked a Ziplining tour.
Just after the free cancelation date passed, I was sent a waiver which is required to be signed to participate.
...
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Can a salary be reduced?
My company is restructuring positions and salary ranges, and they are informing people about their new salaries (sometimes 20% lower than their current salaries).
Is it legal for the employer to lower ...
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Quitting before the start date: is the non compete enforceable?
Prospective employee E signed a job offer stating that his or her first day of work will be two months into 2022. The contract includes a non-compete agreement (NCA) of a duration of 8 months within ...
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Can a business put a specific cancel-by date into a contract?
I attended a gym in Michigan and canceled my membership on 8/28/19. I paid month to month and was under no long term contract. Even though I moved and haven't visited the gym since 8/17/19, I'm being ...
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Can Russia be sued over breaking gas contracts?
During the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, Russia has unilaterally demanded that "unfriendly countries" pay for Russian natural gas in Russian rubles, despite the existing contracts ...
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Can a "You must use this property as primary residence for x years" clause be added to home-sale? Would it differ if the buyer were taking a loan?
My friend and I were discussing the problem of investment properties; a residence owned by someone but not actually their primary residence (the problem being market inflation and reduction of ...
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What happens if an insurance company does not mention a critical clause of a policy during a telephone purchase?
Suppose one phones an insurance company and arrange and pays for car insurance. One then receives the documentation and there is an additional clause that was not mentioned that invalidates the ...
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