Home Law of Contract Quick Guide to Trifling Contract

Quick Guide to Trifling Contract

Quick Guide to Trifling Contract

 

A trifling contract would not
be considered a contract under contract law. A trifling contract is a contract
which would have no great significance applied to it, and therefore, would not
be important under any form of law. For example, a trifling contract might be
an oral agreement between a mother and her son for the son to clean up his room
every Friday in exchange for the mother giving him a ride to his favorite movie
theater every Saturday. 

This “oral agreement” would not be considered a
contract likely because the son in question would also lack the legal authority
to enter into a contract. In addition, the very content of the contract would
ensure its dismissal from any kind of legal significance as a result of its
trifling nature.

A contract which deals with an
exchange of goods or money is very rarely trifling, as theoretically even purchases
which are made for mere cents might be considered to be forms of a contract
which are legally binding. However, in rare circumstances it might be that
incredibly small sums of money being exchanged for incredibly unimportant goods
would be considered trifling contracts. 

For example, paying twenty five cents
for a piece of gum might be considered a trifling oral agreement even though,
theoretically, it might still be in the same vein of an oral agreement as
buying a four hundred dollar television from an electronics store. Obviously,
the latter example would not be considered trifling.