WC 390 What elements are necessary to form a legally enforceable contract? According to the law, there are 6 essential elements, an offer and acceptance, competent parties who have the legal capacity to contract, legality of purpose, mutual agreement, and consideration, and proper form. (Liuzzo)
An offer is an expression and willingness by one of the parties to contact on a certain item with another party with the clear understanding that the contact will be binding upon acceptance by the party who it is offered to. Offers should consist of a statement of present intent by the offering party, a specific proposal that is clear in the terms, and communication to the party that the offer is made. Acceptance is a final expression of consent to the conditions of the offer given. (Walker)
Competent parties are individuals, of sound mind, who are competent to enter into a contract. In general, as discussed in the voice chat, a minor, someone who is incompetent or insane, drunk or drugged are not competent and cannot enter into a legally binding contract. (Peel) Legality of Purpose is a subject matter that cannot be prohibited by law or public policy. The sale of illegal drugs is an example of this. Mutual agreement is where both parties have a common intention or a meeting of minds on the terms of the contract. They must agree to the same terms, same wording, at the same time. Consideration is most often money, but can be some other bargained-for benefit or detriment. (Americanbar.org) and it must be clearly agreed upon by both parties of the contract, and be clearly implied by terms of it. Proper form refers to certain contracts that require to be in writing to be enforceable. An example would be the sale of personal property for $500 or more that cannot be fulfilled in a year.