Contract Law: A Good Option in Your Paralegal Training
As paralegals seek out new career options, contract law is becoming more popular.
Contract Law as a Paralegal Specialty
Contracts formalize an agreement between two or more parties. They can cover the sale of goods or real estate, services, employment, and other areas.
Paralegals who specialize in contract law are valuable members of the legal team. While your paralegal training will teach you about the intricacies of contract law, good writing and editing skills will help you excel in this area.
Below are some fundamentals of contract law that may help you decide if it's the right paralegal specialty for you to pursue.
Contract Law Basics
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:
- Agreement
- Consideration
- Contractual capacity
- Legality
Mutual Agreement
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 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
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 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
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 are unenforceable.
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
- Remedies for breach of contract
Contract Law in Your Paralegal Training and Beyond
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'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.
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Knowing where you want to practice can help you make the most of your paralegal training and certification.
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