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How to Avoid the “Oops” Agreement It plagues men and women of all shapes and sizes. It can knock you off your feet before you know what hit you...cause weeks of headaches. It's the "Oops" Agreement, or at least that's what I call it. The "Oops" Agreement is that contract you enter into without knowing it. How do you enter a contract without knowing it? Glad you asked. It happens alot more than you think it does (there are actually two real-life examples here) and the largest reason for that is the misunderstanding people generally have about contracts. The misnomer is that in order to have a contract one must pen "here-to-there-foreafter's" on a scroll and have it ceremoniously signed. That makes for great television, but is far from the truth. In order to have a legally binding contract you really only need three things: 1. An offer; 2. Acceptance of that offer; 3. And consideration exchanged between the parties. No special ceremonies, no magic words. And emails have further complicated things with the traditional "signature" not being required under the electronic signature statutes in many states. How might all of this play out in real life? Say I work for X organization and am trying to negotiate the purchase of six laptops. I say: © Erin McClarty Esq. 2011 All rights reserved