Legal Definitions - consensual contract

A consensual contract is a type of agreement that becomes legally binding simply through the mutual consent or agreement of the parties involved. It does not require any specific formal actions, such as writing it down, signing a document, or exchanging something of value at the exact moment the agreement is made, for the contract to be formed. The contract is established when the parties understand and agree to the same terms.

Here are some examples to illustrate this concept:

• Verbal Agreement for Services: Imagine a homeowner calls a local handyman and asks if they can fix a leaky faucet next Tuesday for a quoted price of $100. The handyman replies, "Yes, I can be there Tuesday and fix it for that price."

  This scenario forms a consensual contract. Both the homeowner and the handyman have verbally expressed their mutual agreement to the terms (the service, the date, and the price). The contract is legally binding based solely on their consent, even before the work begins or any money changes hands.

• Online Purchase Confirmation: When you add items to an online shopping cart and proceed to checkout, you typically review the order details and click a button like "Place Order" or "Confirm Purchase." Often, this action also signifies your agreement to the website's terms and conditions of sale.

  By clicking "Place Order," you are providing your consent to the seller's terms, thereby forming a consensual contract. The act of clicking serves as your agreement, establishing a legally binding contract without the need for a physical signature or direct verbal communication.

• Informal Loan Agreement: Consider a situation where a friend asks to borrow a specific amount of money from you, promising to pay it back by a certain date. You verbally agree to lend them the money under those terms.

  This verbal agreement, though informal, constitutes a consensual contract. Both parties have mutually agreed to the terms of the loan (the amount, the repayment date). While such agreements between friends might sometimes be difficult to enforce legally due to lack of formal evidence, the contract itself is formed by the mutual consent of the individuals involved.