Contracts Flashcards

Under Pennsylvania law, a contract for the sale of real property must generally be evidenced by a writing to be enforceable under:

Answer: The Pennsylvania Statute of Frauds, 33 Pa. C.S. § 1

33 Pa. C.S. § 1 (Pennsylvania's Statute of Frauds) requires contracts for the sale of real property to be in writing and signed by the party to be charged.

Pennsylvania courts apply the 'substantial performance' doctrine in construction contracts to allow recovery when:

Answer: The contractor has completed the essential purpose of the contract with only minor deviations

Under substantial performance, a contractor who has completed the essential purpose of the contract with only trivial deviations may recover the contract price minus the cost to remedy defects.

Under Pennsylvania law, a liquidated damages clause will be enforced only if:

Answer: Actual damages were difficult to estimate at contracting and the amount is a reasonable forecast of probable harm

Pennsylvania enforces liquidated damages clauses that represent a reasonable pre-estimate of probable harm where actual damages were difficult to ascertain; clauses that serve as penalties are void.

Which Pennsylvania equitable doctrine may bar enforcement of a contract when one party unreasonably delays asserting its rights and the other party is prejudiced by the delay?

Answer: Laches

Laches bars a party from asserting a right when they have unreasonably delayed doing so and the opposing party has been materially prejudiced by that delay.

Under Pennsylvania law, when a contract is rescinded for mutual mistake, the remedy is typically:

Answer: Restoration of the parties to their pre-contract positions

Rescission for mutual mistake unwinds the contract and requires each party to return what was received so that both are restored to their pre-contractual positions.

Under Pennsylvania law, an accord and satisfaction discharges a debt when:

Answer: A creditor agrees to accept a lesser amount as full satisfaction and the debtor tenders that amount

Accord and satisfaction requires an agreement (accord) to accept a stated substitute performance and actual tender and acceptance of that performance (satisfaction), which then discharges the original obligation.