Elements of a Contract

A contract is an agreement between two or more parties to do, or not do, certain things. The elements of a contract are offer and acceptance, consideration, capacity, and legality.

An offer is a proposal to do, or not do, something. An acceptance is when the person to whom the offer was made agrees to it. Consideration is what each party gives up as part of the deal. Capacity is the ability of each party to understand the terms of the contract and enter into it willingly. Legality means that the contract does not violate any laws.