NCA Contracts flashcards
NCA Contracts · Build recall with a focused review session.
32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.
- Contract
- A legally binding agreement supported by offer, acceptance, consideration, and intention to create legal relations, enforceable in law or equity.
- Unilateral contract
- A contract in which one party promises to pay for an act and the other party accepts by complete performance, with no promise exchanged at formation.
- Deed
- A written instrument signed, witnessed, and delivered that binds the maker without consideration; commonly used for gratuitous promises and land transfers.
- Condition precedent
- A term or event that must occur before a contractual duty to perform arises; failure of the condition suspends or discharges the obligation.
- Invitation to treat
- A preliminary communication inviting offers rather than making one; displays, advertisements, and catalogues are typical examples.
- Revocation
- Withdrawal of an offer by the offeror before acceptance; effective only when communicated to the offeree, directly or by reasonable means.
- Counter-offer
- A response that introduces new or different terms, rejecting the original offer and extinguishing it so it cannot later be accepted.
- Postal rule
- A rule deeming acceptance effective when a properly addressed letter is dispatched, provided post was a contemplated mode of acceptance.
- Consideration
- Something of value given in exchange for a promise; it must be sufficient but need not be adequate and must move from the promisee.
- Past consideration
- An act performed before a promise was made; it cannot support the promise unless done at the promisor's request with implied payment.
- Practical benefit
- A benefit obtained by a promisor from the promisee's performance of an existing duty, which can constitute consideration for a fresh promise to pay more.
- Domestic presumption
- The presumption that social and family arrangements lack intention to create legal relations; rebuttable by evidence of contrary intention.
- Necessaries
- Goods or services suited to a minor's condition in life and actual requirements at the time of supply, for which a minor is bound to pay.
- Voidable contract
- A valid contract that one party may elect to rescind or affirm, as with contracts entered into by minors or persons lacking mental capacity.
- Guarantee formality
- A contract of guarantee must be evidenced in writing and signed by the guarantor to be enforceable; indemnities are not subject to this requirement.
- Land contract formality
- A contract for the sale or disposition of an interest in land must be in writing, signed by both parties, and contain all agreed terms.
- Innominate term
- A term whose breach is classified by its consequences; serious breach permits termination, minor breach gives damages only.
- Contra proferentem
- A rule construing ambiguous contractual terms against the party who drafted them or who seeks to rely on them.
- Force majeure clause
- A clause excusing performance on specified events beyond the parties' control; construed narrowly and not covering mere hardship or increased cost.
- Parol evidence rule
- A rule excluding extrinsic evidence that varies or contradicts a complete written agreement, subject to exceptions for vitiating factors and custom.
- Misrepresentation
- A false statement of past or existing fact made by one party to the other that induces the contract and gives rise to rescission or damages.
- Undue influence
- Abuse of a relationship of trust and confidence that coerces a party into a transaction; the presumption shifts the burden to the defendant to prove fairness.
- Common mistake
- A shared fundamental error about the subject matter or a basic assumption of the contract, which may render the agreement void.
- Illegality
- A contract whose object is criminal, tortious, or contrary to public policy; the court may refuse enforcement or allow restitution depending on culpability.
- Substantial performance
- Performance that fulfils the essential purpose of the contract, allowing recovery of the price minus the cost of remedying minor defects.
- Anticipatory breach
- A statement or conduct before performance is due indicating that a party will not perform, entitling the innocent party to sue immediately or wait.
- Frustration
- Discharge where an event after formation, without fault and not foreseen, renders performance impossible, illegal, or radically different from what was agreed.
- Repudiatory breach
- A breach that deprives the innocent party of substantially the whole benefit of the contract, entitling it to terminate and claim damages.
- Expectation damages
- Damages placing the innocent party in the position it would have occupied had the contract been performed, subject to remoteness and mitigation.
- Mitigation
- The duty of the innocent party to take reasonable steps to reduce its loss; avoidable losses are not recoverable from the defendant.
- Liquidated damages
- A clause fixing a genuine pre-estimate of loss for breach; enforceable if reasonable, but unenforceable if it operates as a penalty.
- Specific performance
- A discretionary equitable remedy compelling performance of a contract where damages are inadequate, commonly for unique goods or land.