Contract Law: A Good Option in Your Paralegal Training

As paralegals seek out career options, contract law is becoming more popular.

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You may know that most paralegals work for private law firms that demand long hours in preparation for trial. This work can be exciting, but the workload and stress aren't for everyone. Fortunately, paralegals have other options.

Paralegals who specialize in contract law are valuable members of the legal team. While your paralegal training will teach you about contract law itself, good writing skills and the ability to pay close attention to detail will help you excel in this area of law.

Below are some fundamental elements of contract law that may help you decide if it's the right paralegal specialty for you.

Paralegal Training and Contract Law

Contracts formalize an agreement between two or more parties. They can cover the sale of goods or real estate, services, employment, and other areas. How contracts are legally defined influences how lawyers and paralegals draft them—and the way the courts interpret them.

A contract must have four basic requirements to be legally binding: 1) agreement, 2) consideration, 3) contractual capacity, and 4) legality.

You'll learn more about these contractual requirements during your paralegal training, but what follows is a brief introduction to contract law.

Mutual Agreement: Did I Actually Agree?

An agreement to form a contract must include an offer and an acceptance of that offer. Often parties to a contract agree on the exchange of money for a service or product, but this is not always the case.

It is often the contract wording—or the interpretation of its meaning—that leads to contract disputes. This is one reason why it's so important to make sure that contract language is clear and unambiguous. As a paralegal, this is where you come in, proofreading and correcting contract language.

Consideration: The Exchange of Money and Goods

Any promises made by the parties to a contract must be supported by "mutual consideration," something of value that is exchanged or promised.

Consideration signals the intention to create a legal relation, and can be in the form of money, an object (a car, house, etc.), or even the promise not to do something. Theoretically, even exchanging one dollar is sufficient consideration for a contract to be valid. However, if no money is exchanged—and therefore, if there is no consideration—a contract will be legally voidable.

Contractual Capacity

Parties negotiating a contract are required to be "competent" before entering into a legally binding agreement. If a child or someone found to be "mentally incompetent" signs a contract, the courts will question the validity of the contract and decide whether to enforce it.

Legality: Does Your Contract Break the Law?

The law intends contracts to protect us from fraud. Therefore, contracts must accomplish something that is legal and not against public policy. Loan contracts that are tantamount to usury, contracts dealing with illegal gambling, or contracts dealing with unlicensed individuals (unlicensed "lawyers," "doctors," "stockbrokers," "plumbers" etc.) are unenforceable.

A contract is legal if it is an agreement based on an exchange of promises and enforceable in a court of law. If any contract element is lacking, a judge may decide that a contract is invalid. During your paralegal training, you'll learn more about these four contract elements.

In addition to the four elements, your paralegal training will also teach you about the legal claims for breaking a contract: misrepresentation, mistake and undue influence, as well as the remedies for breach of contract.

Paralegal Training and Contract Law

Contracts are an inherent part of doing business. Without legally binding contracts, we wouldn't trust the promises of others. Because of this, lawyers and paralegals should always review contracts to legally protect the interests of their company or clients.

If you are considering a paralegal career but don't want to work in litigation, contract law is one good option. You will study contract law during your paralegal training, especially in a required business-law class.

If you decide to pursue contract law, you'll find that as you gain contract experience and require less supervision, you'll be given more responsibility, making your paralegal job both more challenging and interesting.

If you're currently working and time is tight— but you still want to get a paralegal degree—consider the convenience of an online paralegal degree to learn more about contract law and other paralegal specialties. Either way, start your paralegal training now.