General principles of contracts (part one)

General principles of contracts (part one)

1. General Principles of Contract An agreement enforceable under law to do or abstain to do something in exchange for consideration .

2. What is a contract and what are the essentials of contracts? This article addresses the meaning of contracts and the essential elements that are fundamental to the creation of a valid contract. Contracts are defined under the Indian Contracts Act, 1872 which is referred throughout the article for the purpose of citing relevant provisions applicable for determining the validity of a contract under law.

3. What is an agreement and what constitutes an agreement? An Agreement is a promise between two entities creating mutual obligations by law. Section 2(e) of the Indian Contract Act, 1872 defines an agreement as ‘Every promise and every set of promises, forming the consideration for each other, is an agreement’. Agreement constitutes several parts for it to be a valid contract. They are Promise, Acceptance, Consideration, Competence and Free Consent.

4. Bilateral Relations and Contracts as a Civil Obligation. The bilateral contract is the most common kind of binding agreement.”Business contracts are almost always bilateral. Civil obligation is that which is binding under civil law. Agreements become enforceable under law only when it becomes a contract after meeting the requisite fundamentals of a contract such a free consent, offer and acceptance, consideration, etc. Thus, contracts are a civil obligation as they are enforceable under civil law after gaining legal validity.

5. What are the different types of contracts? This section talks about the different types of contracts that are observed under law. Some of them are Adhesion Contracts, Aleatory Contracts, Bilateral and Unilateral Contracts, Express Contracts, Implied Contracts, Void and Voidable Contracts, Quasi-Contracts.