Contract Law For Promise In Utah - Contracting and Construction Law Handbook
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From a legal perspective, a contract is made when one party makes a valid offer and another party accepts that offer, and that can often be done verbally. However, Utah law requires that some types of agreements must be in writing.
For a contract to be valid and recognized by the common law, it must include certain elements-- offer, acceptance, consideration, intention to create legal relations, authority and capacity, and certainty. Without these elements, a contract is not legally binding and may not be enforced by the courts.
Suppose one party, the offeror, makes a statement or a promise that causes another party to rely on that statement in such a way that they are financially injured by that reliance. In that case, a court will enforce the statement or promise as if it were a valid contract.
Absent a valid contract, a broken promise does not typically provide grounds for a lawsuit. However, under certain circumstances, the legal doctrine of detrimental reliance may provide a remedy. Detrimental reliance occurs when a party is reasonably induced to rely on a promise made by another party.
How? Generally, to be legally valid, most contracts must contain two elements: All parties must agree about an offer made by one party and accepted by the other. Something of value must be exchanged for something else of value.
Thus, a promise may be enforceable to the extent that the promisee has incurred substantial costs, or conferred benefits, in reasonable reliance on the promise.
Contracts. Chapter 301. Contracts—Formation, Interpretation, and Enforceability. WPI 301.02 Promise Defined. A promise is an expression that justifies the person to whom it is made in reasonably believing that a commitment has been made that something specific will happen or not happen in the future.
Thus, a promise may be enforceable to the extent that the promisee has incurred substantial costs, or conferred benefits, in reasonable reliance on the promise.