Author: Jeremy Eglen

Ask any first year, first semester law student, “What are the elements of a contract?” He or she will (or should) answer, “Offer, acceptance, consideration.” It is generally not required that contracts be written or that every element of the contract be discussed in exhaustive detail, but you have to have those three elements (offer, acceptance, consideration). The three elements of a contract What do they mean? An “offer” is just that – an offer to perform a service, to refrain from some action, to transfer some property rights, or something similar. For example, “I will paint your fence if you pay me $10” is an offer (and probably one too good to pass up). “Acceptance” is some sort of communication that the offer is accepted. It could be that you say “I accept,” but it could also be that you give me $10, or possibly even that you give me the key to your fence without saying a word. If you instead responded, “I will pay you $5 to paint my fence,” then you have refused my original offer, but also made me a counter-offer. If you make a counter-offer, then I have to accept your counter-offer somehow before we can continue. The final required element is “consideration.” Black’s Law Dictionary (7th Edition) defines consideration as “[s]omething of value (such as an act, a forbearance, or a return...