1、Project Management if the offeree need only promise to perform, the contract is bilateral. A unilateral contract is a promise for an act; if the offeree can accept only by complete performance, the contract is unilateral. A unilateral contracts offer becomes irrevocable once substantial performance

2、has been completed.,雙邊與單邊合同,每一個(gè)合同至少涉及到兩個(gè)合同方: 提供方和接受方 。提供方承諾做或者不做某個(gè)（些）事情。采用單邊合同還是雙邊合同取決于接受方為了接受必須做什么 雙邊合同是對(duì)一個(gè)承諾的承諾；如果接受方只需要承諾履行，合同則為雙邊合同。 單邊合同是對(duì)一個(gè)行為的承諾；如果接受方只有通過完全履行才能接受，合同則為單邊合同。在單邊合同中，一旦關(guān)鍵部分已經(jīng)履行， 提供則不能召回。,Expressed vs. Implied Contracts,An express contract is one in which the terms are expressed in

3、 words, oral or written, A contract that is implied from the conduct of the parties is an iniplied-in-fact contract, or simply an implied contract. The parties conduct reveals that they intended to form a contract and creates and defines its terms. To establish an implied-in-fact contract: (1) the p

4、laintiff must have furnished some service or property; (2) the plaintiff must have expected to be paid and the defendant knew or should have known that payment was expected; and (3) the defendant had a chance to reject the service or property and did not.,明確的與隱含的合同,一個(gè)明確的合同中，條款以語言的形式（口頭或書面）明確表述，隱含于合同

5、方的履行準(zhǔn)則之外的合同是一種隱含于事實(shí)的合同， 或簡稱為隱含合同。合同方履行準(zhǔn)則不但表明合同各方有意達(dá)成合同，而且創(chuàng)建并定義合同條款。 建立一個(gè)隱含于事實(shí)的合同：(1) 原告必須已經(jīng)完成一些服務(wù)或產(chǎn)品； (2)原告必須已經(jīng)期望得到支付，被告已經(jīng)知道或應(yīng)該已經(jīng)知道原告期望得到支付； (3) 被告已經(jīng)有機(jī)會(huì)拒絕服務(wù)或產(chǎn)品但是沒有拒絕。,Formal vs. Informal Contracts,Formal contracts require a special form or method of formation to be enforceable. Formal contracts incl

6、ude contracts under seal, which are writings with a special sea attached. All other contracts are informal contracts, or simple contracts. For these, no special form is required (except for certain types; of contracts that must be in writing).,正式與非正式合同,正式合同需要一種特殊的合同形式或形成合同的方法以使合同生效。正式合同包括有印章的合同，即付有特

7、殊印章的書面文字。 所有其他合同都是非正式合同或簡單合同。對(duì)于這些合同，不需要特殊的合同形式(除了一些必須以書面形式存在的合同）。,Executed vs. Executory Contracts,Contracts are also classified according to their stage of performance. A contract that has been performed is an executed contract. A contract that has riot been performed is an executory contract. If o

8、ne party has fully performed but the other has not, the contract is said to be executed on the one side and executory on the other, and it is classified as executory.,已執(zhí)行 與待執(zhí)行 合同,合同也可以按照它們履行的階段來分類。已經(jīng)執(zhí)行的合同稱為已執(zhí)行合同。還未執(zhí)行的合同稱為待執(zhí)行合同。 如果合同一方已經(jīng)履行而另一方還未履行，可以說該合同一方已經(jīng)執(zhí)行另一方還未執(zhí)行，該合同歸類為待執(zhí)行.,VALID, VOID, VOIDABLE,

9、 AND UNENFORCEABLE CONTRACTS,A valid contract results when all of the elements necessary to contract formation exist-when th parties agree, through an offer and an acceptance, to form a contract; the contract is supported by consideration; the contract is for a legal purpose; and the parties had leg

10、al capacity to contract, A contract that is void is no contract. A void contract gives rise to no legal obligation on the part d any party. An illegal contract is, for example, a void contract, A voidable contract is a valid contract in which one or both of the parties has the option of avoiding his

11、 or her legal obligation. If the contract is avoided, both parties are released. If it is ratified, both parties must perform An unenforceable contract is a valid contract that cannot be enforced due to certain defenses. For example, a valid contract barred by a statute of limitations is an unenforc

12、eable contract.,有效的，無效的，可轉(zhuǎn)為無效的和不能生效的合同,當(dāng)所有形成合同的必要因素已經(jīng)存在時(shí)當(dāng)所有合同方通過提供和接受達(dá)成一致同意簽定合同；合同具有報(bào)酬的支持；合同具有合法的目的；合同各方具有簽定合同的法律能力一個(gè)有效的合同即可形成。 一個(gè)無效的合同不能稱為合同。一個(gè)無效的合同對(duì)合同任何一方都無法律義務(wù)的約束。例如，一個(gè)非法的合同即是一個(gè)無效的合同。 一個(gè)可轉(zhuǎn)為無效的合同是一個(gè)有效的合同，在合同中，合同一方或雙方可以選擇避免他或她的法律義務(wù)。如果合同轉(zhuǎn)為無效，合同雙方均不再受合同條款的約束。如果合同獲得批準(zhǔn)，合同雙方均應(yīng)履行合同。 一個(gè)不能生效的合同是一個(gè)有效的合同，由于某

13、些原因該合同不能生效。例如，一個(gè)受某些因素限制的有效合同即是一個(gè)不能生效的合同。,Excuses for non-performance of a Contract,Misrepresentation (false statement or assertion of fact) Innocent - didnt know they were lying Fraudulant - knowingly Duress - induced by means of intimidation (coercion) Undue Influence - one party to a contract domi

14、nates the free will of the other party.,不履行合同的原因,錯(cuò)誤的描述（對(duì)事實(shí)的不真實(shí)陳述或聲稱） 無錯(cuò)不知道對(duì)方在欺騙 有錯(cuò)知道對(duì)方在欺騙 強(qiáng)迫由于受到威脅、恐嚇等。 不適當(dāng)?shù)挠绊懞贤环降囊庠甘艿搅硪环降目刂啤?,Mistakes,Often happens with submission of bids Rectification of a “common mistake” (secretarial or recording in nature) Unilateral Mistake - made by 1 party example.,錯(cuò)誤,經(jīng)常在

15、投遞投標(biāo)書時(shí)發(fā)生。 批準(zhǔn) 普通錯(cuò)誤（打印或記錄錯(cuò)誤） 單邊錯(cuò)誤合同一方所犯的錯(cuò)誤 示例.,Unilateral Mistake,Suppose you are bidding on a construction contract and make an incorrect transfer from a summary sheet such that your bid (submitted under seal for 60 days) is $70,000 lower than you intended. After 30 days, you discover your mistake an

16、d attempt to withdraw the bid. The client understands that you made a mistake but after 50 days accepts your bid. Should you be required to honor the bid?,單邊錯(cuò)誤,假設(shè)您在投標(biāo)一個(gè)建筑合同，但是您依據(jù)總結(jié)單做了一個(gè)不正確的轉(zhuǎn)述 ，以至于您的投標(biāo)（已經(jīng)投遞并付有印章60天有效）比您原先所期望的低了$70,000 。 30天后，您發(fā)現(xiàn)了自己的錯(cuò)誤并試圖撤回投標(biāo)?？蛻裘靼啄噶隋e(cuò)誤但是50天后接受了您的投標(biāo)。 您是否必須履行您的投標(biāo)?,Contr

17、act Interpretation Principles,THE PLAIN MEANING RULE (ALSO KNOWN AS PAROL EVIDENCE RULE) - When a contract is in writing that is not subject to conflicting meanings, a court will enforce the writing according to its plain meaning. Under this plain meaning rule, the meaning of the words must be deter

18、mined from the face of the instrument-a court cannot consider evidence extrinsic to the document.,合同解釋原理,字面意義原理 (亦稱為PAROL 證據(jù)原理) - 當(dāng)一個(gè)合同是以書面形式存在而且不存在意思矛盾時(shí)，法庭將依據(jù)合同的字面意義使合同生效。 依據(jù)此字面意義原理, 合同中詞語的意思必須由其字面意義來決定法庭不能考慮此合同之外的證據(jù)。,Contract Interpretation Principles,Reasonable Meanings and Implied terms It is im

19、possible to write everything down Contra Proferentum Interpretation of unclear statements will go against the party responsible for writing them.,合同解釋原理,合理的意思和隱含的條款 不可能把每一項(xiàng)東西都寫下來。 相反Proferentum 對(duì)不清楚陳述的解釋將參照合同的寫作方對(duì)合同條款的解釋。,Ambiguities,When the writing is ambiguous, a court will interpret the language

20、 to give effect to the parties intent as expressed in their contract. A court will not make or remake a contract nor interpret the language according to what the parties claim their intent was when they made it. In interpreting ambiguities, the following rules are generally applied:,模糊條款,當(dāng)書面語言意義模糊時(shí)，

21、法庭將對(duì)合同中的語言進(jìn)行解釋以便是合同方在合同中的意愿得以生效。法庭將既不會(huì)簽訂或重新簽訂合同也不會(huì)按照合同方在簽訂合同時(shí)所聲稱的意愿解釋合同中的語言。在解釋模糊條款時(shí)，通常情況下將采用以下原則。,Ambiguities,1. A reasonable, lawful, and effective meaning will be given to all of a contracts terms. 2. A contract will be interpreted as a whole; individual clauses will be considered subordinate to

22、the contracts general intent. Ali writings that are part of the same transaction will be interpreted together, although terms that were negotiated separately will be given greater consideration than standardized terms and terms that were not negotiated separately.,模糊條款,1. 合同中所有的條款都必須具有合理的、合法的、有效的意義。

23、 2. 一個(gè)合同必須作為一個(gè)整體來解釋；單個(gè)條款必須作為合同整體意義的一部分來考慮。同一條款的所有書面部分都必須放在一起來解釋；但是，與標(biāo)準(zhǔn)化的條款和非分開單獨(dú)談判的條款相比 ，分開單獨(dú)談判的條款將作為重點(diǎn)來考慮。,Ambiguities,3. A word will be given its ordinary, commonly accepted meaning, and a technical word or term will be given its technical meaning, unless the parties clearly intended something els

24、e. 4. Specific and exact wording will be given greater consideration than general language. 5. Written or typewritten terms prevail over printed ones.,模糊條款,3. 合同中的單詞將按照它的普通意義和通常情況下被接受的意義來解釋，一個(gè)技術(shù)性的單詞或術(shù)語將按照它的技術(shù)意義來解釋，除非合同各方清楚地表明了其他意義。 4. 與一般性的語言相比，具體的和精確的用語將被重點(diǎn)考慮。 5. 當(dāng)存在幾種書面形式時(shí)，將以手寫和打字機(jī)打出的術(shù)語為準(zhǔn)，而非打印出的術(shù)語

25、。,Ambiguities,6. When the language used has more than one meaning, it will be interpreted against the party who drafted the contract. 7. When evidence of trade usage, prior dealings between the parties, and previous course of performance under the contract is admitted, what each of the parties does

26、in pursuance of the contract will be interpreted as consistent with what the other does and with any relevant usage of trade and course of dealing and performance.,模糊條款,6. 當(dāng)所用的語言具有多種意義時(shí)，將參照合同起草方對(duì)合同條款的解釋。. 7. 當(dāng)在合同方之間存在貿(mào)易慣例或先前交易方面的證據(jù)，以前的履行方針是可以接受的，對(duì)合同任何一方為了達(dá)成合同所做的努力的解釋,將必須與合同另一方為達(dá)成合同所做的努力以及任何相關(guān)的貿(mào)易慣例和交

27、易及履行方針保持一致。,Ambiguities,In the above circumstances, express terms are given the greatest weight, followed by course of performance, course of dealing, and usage of trade, in that order. When considering custom and usage, a court will look at the customs and usage of trade of the particular business

28、and the locale where the contract was made or is to be performed,模糊條款,在上述情況下，明確化的術(shù)語將會(huì)被給予最重的分量，其次是 履行方針，交易方針， 和貿(mào)易慣例，應(yīng)該按照以上分量順序。當(dāng)考慮到習(xí)慣或慣例時(shí)，法庭將考慮簽訂合同或履行合同所在的相關(guān)特定商業(yè)領(lǐng)域和地區(qū)的貿(mào)易習(xí)慣和慣例,Contract Interpretation Principles,Duty to Mitigate A party that suffers a loss due to a breach of contract must take reasonab

29、le steps to reduce the amount of damages suffered Liquidated damages (Penalty Clauses) Must be based on genuine pre-estimates of damages (Rule is to compensate, not punish) Quantum Meruit When price is not an express term of the contract then amount is determined by - as much as is reasonably deserv

30、ed,合同解釋原理,減少損失的責(zé)任 由于合同違約而遭受損失的合同方必須采取合理的行動(dòng)來減少所遭受損失的數(shù)量。 清算損失 (懲罰條款) 必須建立在真實(shí)的對(duì)損失的預(yù)先估算之上 (法律的目的是為了賠償，不是為了懲罰) 數(shù)量 Meruit 當(dāng)價(jià)格不是合同中的一個(gè)明確表述的條款時(shí)，數(shù)量取決于其最高的合理價(jià)值。,Contract Interpretation Principles,Specific Performance To remedy a dispute, court may require a party to a contract to perform a contractual obligation. Usually occurs in contracts concerning the sale of property Injunction A court order th