What I was trying to get at is, if me and you agree to do something, then I say no I won’t, I didn’t say that. What proof do you have? Do you have a contract? Yes. Is it enforceable. Most likely not. It would be my word against yours.
The law operates on many levels and in the real world it doens’t always work to the ideals.
Exactly, Markxxx. What you’ve described is not a legal question of whether a contract exists, but whether you can prove an oral contract was established. Of course, this varies according to the facts of the situation. Sometimes it is just a swearing contest. But in other cases, other facts can help prove the parties intended for there to be a contract.
For instance, to go back to my fence example – say we orally agree that I will build a fence on your property. If you renege at that point, it is your word against mine. But what if I don’t breach the contract until later, say, after I’ve gone out and bought fencing materials and tools. Maybe you’ve cleared debris or weeds off the area where the fence is to go. These facts would be admissible to show that we had entered into a contract for me to fence your property.
So, it is possible to prove a contract existed by showing you acted as if you had agreed to contract.
Plunging like stones from a slingshot on Mars.